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UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



The 

Franco-German 

War of 1870 



BY J 
HENRY PERCY LITCHFIELD 






GRACEHILL 

BROOKLYN, L. 1. 

1872 






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THE LIBRARY 
OF CONGRESS 

WASHINGTON 



Copyright, iSqq 

BY 

HENRY PERCY LITCHFIELD 
T^A^O COPIES RECEIVED, 






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SECOND COP^^^ lf?nicfeccbocl?ec iprees, "new IBorft 






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Affectionately Inscribed 

TO 

My Father 
EDWIN C LITCHFIELD 



THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR OF 
1870 




THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR OF 

1870 

THE year 1870 opened with as fair 
a prospect as one apparently 
could wish for of the continuance of 
the then general European peace : and 
no cloud in the political horizon por- 
tended the coming struggle between 
two of the first-class Powers of the 
Continent : still less would it have 
been predicted that the struggle would 
have ended as it did. 

Germany was occupied with the 
work of Unification. The War of 1866 
had resulted in the dissolution of the 
old Germanic Confederation, and in 
the formation of two new ones (with 
the river Main for their common boun- 



4 ^be 3franco*(5crman 

dary) and in the exclusion of Austria 
from German affairs. These two con- 
federations were known respectively as 
the Northern and the Southern. 

The War of 1866, itself, grew out of 
the war with Denmark in 1864. The 
alleged object of this war was to de- 
liver Holstein (a German- speaking 
country in the north, whose duke was 
the King of Denmark) from a foreign 
yoke. This movement began in 1863. 
Frederick VII. was then King of 
Denmark ; but, dying childless in 
November of that year, he was suc- 
ceeded by Christian IX., a prince of 
the House of Schles wig- Holstein, 
who, by virtue of a previous treaty, 
ascended the throne in preference to 
the intermediate heirs. The Holstein- 
ers, however, refused to recognize the 
new King as their duke ; upon which, 
Prince Frederic, son of the Duke of 
Augustinburg, claimed the duchy. 
The German Diet then determined 
that, on account of its German origin, 
the duchy should be separated from 



mac of X870 5 

Denmark. At this point, Prussia and 
Austria, thrusting aside the minor 
States, formed an alliance and com- 
menced the war on their own account. 
The Danes resisted heroically, but in 
vain. They had hoped for the assist- 
ance of England and France, in which 
countries the popular feeling was fav- 
orable to their cause. The sympathy 
in England for the Danes was doubt- 
less due, in a great measure, to the 
fact that the eldest daughter of the 
new King of Denmark had but recently 
married the Prince of Wales, and 
she at once became extremely popular 
in her adopted country. But as the 
Crown Prince of Prussia had some 
years before married the eldest 
daughter of Queen Victoria, and as 
his eldest son, the prospective King of 
Prussia, is the eldest grandson of that 
queen, it may be considered doubtful 
whether the Queen of England would 
regard the aggrandizement of Prussia 
at the expense of Denmark in the same 
light as the Princess of Wales. In 



6 XLbc 3franco=(5erman 

any case, the French and English 
Governments were desirous of pre- 
serving the peace for themselves ; and 
the Danes, left unaided, were com- 
pelled to yield to superior numbers, 
and to cede, not only Holstein, but 
also Schleswig, to the enemy. Thus 
Germany, after clamoring to free Hol- 
stein, a German-speaking country, 
from the Danish yoke, did not hesi- 
tate to impose the German yoke on 
Schleswig, a country inhabited by a 
Danish people, speaking the Danish 
language. The wrong, too, was in- 
flicted by a powerful State on a weak 
neighbor, unable to resist. 

But Prussia, ever since the accession 
of King William, has, in reality, been 
governed by his Premier, Count Bis- 
marck, a bold and able, though un- 
scrupulous man, whose chief object 
appears to be the aggrandizement of 
Prussia, which he would seek to "ac- 
complish by fair means or foul, and 
whose only thought would seem to be, 
how he may most firmly secure her ac- 



IKaac ot 1870 7 

quisitions. He has, accordingly, been 
very unpopular, personally, both in 
and out of Germany, though his suc- 
cess in uniting Germany has caused 
considerable abatement of the feeling 
against him in that country. 

The understanding between Prussia 
and Austria had been that the spoils 
acquired from Denmark should be 
equally divided between them. But, as 
often happens in such cases, having 
accomplished their object the parties 
disagreed as to the division of the 
spoils. The lust of conquest has al- 
ways stained the character of the Prus- 
sian Government, as Prussian history 
shows ; and Count Bismarck far from 
abandoning the policy of territorial 
acquisition, seems to have made it a 
cardinal point of his administration. 

This dispute finally resulted in the 
War of 1866. The war lasted less 
than a fortnight ; and its shortness and 
consequences excited universal aston- 
ishment in Europe. Within this fort- 
night, the political face of Germany 



8 Zbc 3francos'(5erman 

was changed. Austria, which had 
been for centuries, the leading State 
of Germany, and which was esteemed 
a first-class Power, was signally de- 
feated by Prussia (a comparatively 
new State,) and excluded from the 
affairs of the Confederation. New ter- 
ritory was added to Prussia, and Ger- 
many, with the exception of Austria, 
was formed into two confederations, as 
stated above. Part of the territory an- 
nexed to Prussia was Hanover, whose 
king, George V. (grandson of George 
III., King of both England and Hano- 
ver), unfortunately for himself, sided 
with Austria in this war, and lost his 
dominions in consequence. This war, it 
will be seen, increased the power of 
Prussia, as she became territorially 
and politically the leading State of 
Germany, and, indeed, one of the 
leading Powers of Europe. Her vic- 
tory over Austria, though it took the 
world by surprise, was in reality quite 
natural. Austria was composed of 
several distinct nationalities, speaking 



mat of 1870 9 

different languages, and which, though 
under the same sovereign, were united 
by no common bond. Prussia, however, 
is inhabited, principally, by a popula- 
tion descended from a common stock 
with identical interests. The provinces 
she acquired in the partition of Poland 
would appear to be united and in com- 
plete harmony with the rest of Prussia. 
Her successes are also due to the ex- 
cellency of her military institutions. 
Kvery man is something of a soldier, 
and liable to take the field in case of 
necessity. 

Another result of the War of 1866 
was the acquisition of Venice by 
Italy. Kver since the days of the 
Roman Empire, Italy had been di- 
vided into several independent States, 
at one time feudatory to the German 
Empire, but which in the Middle 
Ages became the seats of several fa- 
mous republics, and the scenes of 
numberless wars. Italy remained 
divided until the movement of 1859 
united the whole peninsula into one 



lo JZbc 3Franco=(Berman 

kingdom, with the exception of Rome 
and of the adjacent territory, which 
remained under the temporal sover- 
eignty of the Pope : and of Venice, 
which had been an Austrian province 
ever since the days of the first Napo- 
leon, and which was not taken from 
Austria at the same time as Lombardy, 
which, with the aid of France, Sardinia 
wrested from that monarchy in 1859. 
A general movement at that time 
throughout Italy united the greater 
part of the peninsula to the dominions 
of the Sardinian monarch (Victor 
Kmmanuel) who thenceforth assumed 
the title of King of Italy. By allying 
herself with Prussia against Austria 
in 1866, Italy acquired Venice, which 
was ceded to her at the end of the war ; 
and she thus only needed the remains 
of the Papal dominions to complete 
the political unity of the peninsula. 
The continued occupation of Rome by 
Napoleon III. prevented the immedi- 
ate union of the city of Rome to the 
Italian kingdom ; though it was evi- 



•QXHar of 1870 n 

dent that the downfall of the temporal 
power of the Pope was but a question 
of time, and that, by patiently wait- 
ing, the Italians would eventually find 
themselves masters of the city. The 
removal of the capital from Turin to 
Florence was regarded as a step in that 
direction. I have digressed so far, not 
because Italy took part in the War of 
1870, but because the results of that 
war on Italy were considerable. 

France, at the beginning of 1870, 
was in a state of high apparent pros- 
perity. Since 1848, she had been un- 
der the government of Napoleon III., 
who had been elected President of the 
French Republic towards the end of 
that year, and who was elected Em- 
peror in December, 1852. But his 
seat was far from easy. It is true he 
was elected by an immense majority 
of the people ; but there were still par- 
tisans of the Republic in France ; and 
also adherents of the Bourbon and 
Orleans dynasties. He did not marry 
until after he became Kmperor ; and at 



12 XLbc 3franco*(5ermau 

the birth of his son, the Prince Impe- 
rial, in 1856, he was already forty- 
eight years of age ; and, consequently, 
his age, together with the weight of 
government, might have carried him 
off at any time before the Prince Im- 
perial arrived at the age of manhood, 
and would have exposed France to 
another revolution and his dynasty to 
an overthrow. He was, of course, anx- 
ious to transmit the throne to his de- 
scendants ; and the young Prince, had 
he been twenty years older, would 
have been more sure of ascending the 
throne. 

Finally, towards the close of 1869 
the Kmperor seemed willing to grant 
some constitutional reforms, — such as, 
the liberty of the press, and greater 
freedom of discussion to the Corps 
Legislatif. He accordingly appointed 
as Prime Minister, "fimile Olivier, a 
man of liberal views. The Corps Leg- 
islatif ohos^VL in 1869 contained among 
its members Gambetta and Rochefort. 
The former became, before a year had 



mac ot 1870 13 

passed, one of the foremost men of 
France. The latter had acquired his 
celebrity, not from any inherent ability 
that he possessed, but on account of 
the violent antagonism he had shown 
to the Emperor, several years before, 
in a journal of which he was editor, 
and which had then caused his ban- 
ishment. He took advantage of the 
recent amnest}^ of the Emperor to all 
French exiles to return to France in 
1869 and was elected to the Corps Lig- 
islatif by a district comprising the 
lowest class of the Parisian popula- 
tion, who probably supposed that his 
having been banished, together with 
his inveterate hostility to the Emperor, 
proved his competency for the Legis- 
lature. 

He took his seat in the lyCgislature 
and continued his attacks on the Em- 
peror. But an event occurred early 
in 1870, which caused great agitation 
in Paris, and endangered the safety 
of the Government. Victor Noir, not 
only one of the partisans of Rochefort, 



14 ^be 3fcanco*(5erman 

but also one of the assistants in edit- 
ing his paper, called upon Prince 
Pierre Bonaparte, a cousin of the 
Emperor. The real object of the visit 
will probably never be known : but it 
seems to have had a suspicious appear- 
ance ; for the Prince, in a heat of 
passion killed him. The excitement 
that followed in consequence of this 
event was immense but was success- 
fully put down ; and the plebiscite of 
the following May seemed to estab- 
lish the Kmperor more firmly on his 
throne. 

A war between France and Prussia 
seemed a possibility of the remote fu- 
ture, though a possibility which must, 
sooner or later, become a reality. But 
the event was nearer than people sup- 
posed, and the spark that lighted the 
war came from a quarter whence it 
was least expected. Breaking out as 
it did in the midst of profound peace, 
it shows how difiicult it is to foretell 
an event a short time before it hap- 
pens. 



m^V of 1870 15 

Spain, in the southwest of Europe 
had been governed, since the begin- 
ning of the eighteenth century, by a 
younger branch of the Bourbon dy- 
nasty. The concentration of all politi- 
cal power into the hands of the King, 
together with the degeneracy of the last 
monarchs of that family, had caused 
Spain to decline in prosperity. The 
misgovernment of the last queen, Isa- 
bella II., resulting from a bad educa- 
tion and evil counsellors, led to the 
Revolution of 1868, when Queen Isa- 
bella was driven from the kingdom, 
and the throne declared vacant. 

General Prim became the head of 
Government, and he continued to be 
the real ruler of the nation until his 
death (caused by assassination, on 
New Year's Day, 1871, in the fifty- 
seventh year of his age) notwithstand- 
ing that, after the Cortes had decided 
in favor of a monarchy, Serrano, under 
the title of Regent, became the nomi- 
nal chief of the Government. 

Queen Isabella and her family fled 



i6 tibe 3franco*(Berman 

to Paris, where they were received by 
the Emperor Napoleon ; but they lived 
there very privately. In the mean- 
time, it being decided that monarch- 
ical institutions should be maintained 
in Spain, the election of a monarch for 
that country became the practical ques- 
tion of the hour, and excited much 
interest in Europe. Several candi- 
dates were brought forward and re- 
jected for various reasons. In the 
summer of 1870, General Prim offered 
the crown of Spain to a German 
prince of the House of Hohenzollem, 
distantly related to the King of Prus- 
sia ; and he summoned the Cortes to 
meet about the middle of July for the 
purpose of electing him. The Prince 
at first accepted the offer ; but no 
sooner was his nomination known in 
France, than Frenchmen of all parties 
pronounced the election of a German 
prince to the throne of Spain an insult 
to their country ; and they declared 
that the recent nomination had been 
premeditated by Count Bismarck for 



mar of 1870 17 

the purpose of annoying France, and 
of acquiring an ally for Germany in 
the South, in case a war should break 
out between France and Prussia. 

Since the dethronement of Queen 
Isabella, in September, 1868, Europe, 
generally, had taken considerable in- 
terest in the question, " Who shall 
be King of Spain?" It w^as about 
two years before a suitable candi- 
date was found. Queen Isabella's re- 
nunciation of the throne of Spain in 
favor of her son, the Prince of the 
Asturias, was not much heeded. The 
ex-King of Portugal refused the crown 
in to to. Bspartero, a Spanish gen- 
eral, though he had some partisans, 
would not have answered, as he was. 
already very old, and he had no 
children to whom the throne might 
descend ; the other candidates were 
foreign princes, and were rejected, 
either on account of their youth, or 
from deference to the Kmperor Napo- 
leon. 



i8 ^be 3franco*(5erman 

It is difficult to conceive how the 
news of the nomination of the Prince 
of Hohenzollern to the throne of 
Spain could have roused the French 
to such a pitch of frenzy, for he 
was as eligible as any of the candi- 
dates proposed ; neither would his 
election have been more threatening 
than that of the others — for it would 
have been more necessary to his 
interest as king to seat himself firm- 
ly on the throne by ingratiating 
himself in the affections of his sub- 
jects, than to form an offensive and 
defensive alliance with his native 
country. But his German nationality 
prejudiced the French against him, 
and brought on the war. We give 
extracts below from several Parisian 
journals, showing the state of feeling 
in France on the subject. 

The Constitutionnel observed : 

"The sentiments produced on our 

mind by the candidature of the Prince 

of Hohenzollern for the crown of 

Spain, are shared by most of our con- 



IKUac ot 1870 19 

temporaries, there being a general 
feeling of doubt, astonishment, and 
suspense. It appears that the Span- 
iards are about in the same case, al- 
though so deeply interested in the 
affair. It is true that they still pre- 
serve a hope of being consulted. A 
Madrid journal, the Tiempo, declares 
that the Prussian candidate, upheld by 
several ministers, fifteen or twenty 
deputies, and Marshal Prim, will see 
formed against him a league, composed 
of Republicans, Carlists, Montpen- 
sierists, and the partisans of Alphonso 
XII., — that is to say,— everybody. 
The same organ, however, adds' that 
the question is not so far advanced as 
has been imagined ; that the present 
Government has contracted no formal 
engagement, and that the Prussian 
Prince puts conditions on his accept- 
ance which will not perhaps be ac- 
ceded to. It seems to us, indeed, very 
improbable that Marshal Prim, who 
has always piqued himself on a pro- 
found respect for the national will, 



20 ^be 3fi:ancos(5etman 

would at once overleap it so abruptly, 
and suppress it. It may also be re- 
marked, that at present, much is said 
of the Prince's relationship, and little 
of himself, personally. His allies and 
ancestors are known and that is all. 
Who is he ? What is he fit for ? 
What are his ideas ? If the people 
revolt against legitimate and semi- 
legitimate rulers, against divine right, 
it is not, doubtless, for the purpose of 
choosing fresh princes, guided solely 
by the sacred pages of the Almanac 
de Gotha. Either the future King 
of Spain is only to play the modest 
part of a master of the ceremonies, in 
which case it will not be worth while 
to be so long on the lookout ; or, he is 
really destined to exercise a considera- 
ble influence over the country of his 
adoption, in which event it would per- 
haps be well to discuss a little the tri- 
fling matter as to whether he is capable 
of doing what is expected of him." 

The following is from the Memorial 
Diplomatique. 



Timar of 1870 21 

"The present is not the first time 
that this candidature has been brought 
forward. In fact, some weeks since, 
we assigned reasons for the matter 
falling through. To-day, less than 
ever, would King William, in his 
quality as head of the Hohenzollern 
family, authorize a Prussian prince to 
accept that crown which Queen Isa- 
bella has just abdicated in favor of her 
son, the Prince of the Asturias. I^et 
the words pronounced by King Wil- 
liam at the time of his coronation 
at Koenigsberg be borne in mind. 
After taking up his position as a reso- 
lute defender of the principle of I^e- 
gitimacy, he is not a monarch who 
would allow a member of his family 
to usurp a crown in connivance with 
the Revolution." 

The Nord says : 

"The probability is, that the part 
taken by Count Bismarck in the can- 
didature of Prince I^eopold has been 
singularly exaggerated. That the lat- 
ter has accepted the offer of Marshal 



22 zhc 3francos(5erman 

Prim is probable ; that King William, 
whose authorization is necessary, has 
consented, may also be true ; but the 
fact seems to be more than doubtful 
that the Prussian Government con- 
sented eagerly to the wishes of the 
Spanish Prime Minister. One quality 
which no one can deny to the Federal 
chancellor is practical common sense ; 
and endowed as he is with that fac- 
ulty, he could not help seeing the 
difficulty in which his country would 
almost inevitably be involved by the 
accession of a prince of its royal 
house to the throne of Spain. The 
stability of the new Peninsular dy- 
nasty would be far from secure." 

The Debats observed on this sub- 
ject : 

"As we do not suppose that Prim, 
if he had been carrying on an in- 
trigue, would have had the kindness 
to impart to the correspondent of the 
Agency an answer to his question, in 
order that he might inform the whole 
of Kurope, we do not attach the slight- 



•QWar of 1870 23 

est importance to the denials of the 
telegraph. What is rather more se- 
rious in the despatch of which we 
speak, is the fact that it contradicts 
the statement of there being an inten- 
tion of proclaiming a king without the 
approval of the Cortes, given, not by a 
simple, but by an absolute majority, 
in conformity with the law recently 
voted. It must be confessed, that if 
there had been an attempt to go to work 
in any other way, as the first telegram 
seemed to indicate, and to impose 
Prince I^eopold on Spain, without hav- 
ing first consulted the representatives 
of the country, it would have appeared 
more as if those in authority were 
seeking to light up the flames of civil 
war, than to find a king for this throne, 
vacant now for nearly two years." 
The Avenir National spoke thus : 
*' Prince I^eopold is not only a firm 
Catholic, but of a pleasant disposition, 
and little inclined to opposition. He 
will be, in Prim's hands, an instru- 
ment not less docile than his brother 



24 Zbc 3franco*i5crman 

has been for the various ministers who 
have succeeded each other at Buch- 
arest, since his accession to the throne 
of the Danubian Principalities. He is 
just the candidate for a minister who is 
ambitious, and anxious to hold sway. 
Another advantage that this pretender 
would have in Prim's eyes is, that, in 
his quality of eldest son, he would 
one day inherit a fortune, considerable 
even for a prince. He is not a younger 
brother, as the Patria has it. The fer- 
vor of the Catholic sentiments of the 
Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen family did 
not prevent it from enriching itself 
with the property of the abbeys in 
the beginning of the century. Be- 
sides, Napoleon I. behaved very gen- 
erously to the grandfather when this 
latter married a Murat princess, as he 
generally did to the members of the 
royal houses who consented to form 
alliances with his family. Finally, 
the cession of the Principality with its 
forty thousand inhabitants made by 
the father to the King of Prussia in 



mac ot 1870 25 

the midst of the troubles of 1849, did 
not take place without a heavy pe- 
cuniary indemnity in the shape of a 
very high annual income which the 
Prussian Treasury pays every year. 
Prim would have shown only an ill- 
grace had he presented to the Spanish 
people a Pretender insufficiently pro- 
vided for, needy, and on his knees for 
a five-franc piece, as Beaumarchais 
has it. Evidently, he who casts a 
doubt on the pecuniary resources of 
the candidate was misled by the mod- 
erate means of the reigning family in 
Prussia. Prim's protigS is in no way 
like the other princes of that country, 
being of an unwarlike disposition, a 
fervent Catholic, studious, and rich, 
whilst his cousins are soldiers from 
head to foot, Protestants, not very 
deeply lettered, and with small for- 
tunes." 

These extracts would appear to 
show that the feeling of France gen- 
erally was opposed to the election 



26 ^be 3francos»(5crman 

of a Prussian Prince to the throne of 
Spain, notwithstanding the fact that 
the candidate was more nearly related, 
through females, to the Emperor Na- 
poleon, than to the King of Prussia. 
It would hardly be worth while to 
bring the candidature so prominently 
into notice, but for the fact of its in- 
strumentality in bringing on a war 
which led to the most important re- 
sults to the countries engaged, and 
which led indirectly to other results 
of equal importance to the world at 
large. I will refer to these in the 
proper place. 

The father of Prince Leopold re- 
nounced in behalf of his son all claims 
to the throne of Spain as soon as he 
saw the difficulties it would give rise 
to in Europe ; but the renunciation did 
not have the desired effect. The nom- 
ination of the Prince was made known 
to Europe, July 5, 1870 ; a week after, 
on the 12th, he notified the French 
Government of his renunciation. This 
renunciation was apparently as satis- 



•Qmac of 1870 27 

factory as could be desired ; but it was 
not enough. Tbe King of Prussia 
was staying at the time at the water- 
ing-place of Bms ; and on the morn- 
ing of the 13th, he was met by M. 
Benedetti, the French Ambassador, on 
the Promenade. The King handed 
M. Benedetti a Cologne newspaper, 
containing the news of the Prince's 
renunciation. This, M. Benedetti said 
he already knew. On the King's say- 
ing the matter was finally settled, 
Benedetti made the unexpected de- 
mand for a distinct assurance from that 
monarch that his consent would never 
be given to the candidature, if it 
should be made in future, which as- 
surance the King firmly refused to 
give, though repeatedly urged to do 
so by the French Ambassador. The 
King, later in the day, denied an in- 
terview to Benedetti, on the ground 
that his final answer was already 
given, and giving him to understand 
that communications must proceed 
regularly through his ministers. On 



28 ^bc 3franco*(5ernian 

the following day, the French Am- 
bassador left Ems, after taking an in- 
formal leave of the King. 

On the 15th, M. Olivier, Prime 
Minister of the Kmperor Napoleon, 
announced to the Corps LSgislatif 
the determination of the Government 
to break off all diplomatic intercourse 
with Prussia. In this communication, 
after giving an account of the nego- 
tiations, the Premier added : ' * Under 
these circumstances, the Government 
would have forgotten its dignity, and 
also its prudence, had it not made 
preparations. We have prepared to 
maintain the war which is offered to 
us, leaving upon each that portion of 
the responsibility which devolves upon 
him. Since yesterday, we have called 
out the reserves, and we shall take 
necessary measures to guard the in- 
terests, the security, and the honor of 
France." 

This address was generally accepted, 
not merely by the Corps LSgislatif ^ 
but by Europe, as a declaration of war, 



mat of 1870 29 

as it virtually was ; for it showed that 
the war had been definitely decided 
upon by the French Government, 
though the formal declaration was de- 
layed some days longer. On the day 
this address was delivered, the Due 
de Grammont, the Minister of Foreign 
Aifairs, told the English Ambassador 
in Paris, that the ' ' Prussian Govern- 
ment had deliberately insulted France, 
by declaring to the public that the 
King had affronted the French Ambas- 
sador. It was evidently the intention 
of the Government of Prussia to take 
credit with the people of Germany for 
having acted with haughtiness and 
discourtesy : in fact, to humiliate 
France." On the 20th, the Duke, in 
a speech to the Corps Ligislatif^ said : 
' ' In conformity with the law or cus- 
tom, and by order of the Emperor, I 
have requested the French Charge 
d^ Affaires at the Court of Berlin to 
notify to the Prussian Government 
our resolution to seek by force of arms 
the guaranties we have not been able 



30 tibe 3fcanco*(5ecman 

to obtain by discussion. That step 
has been taken, and I have the honor 
to inform the Legislative Body, that 
consequently, a state of war exists 
since yesterday, the 19th, between 
France and Prussia. This declaration 
also applies to the allies of Prussia, 
who lend to that Power the assistance 
of their arms against us. ' ' 

The Declaration of War sent to 
Berlin was in the following terms : 

" In fulfilment of the orders he has 
received from his government, the un- 
dersigned Chargi d' Affaires of France 
has the honor to make known to his 
Kxcellency the Minister of Foreign 
Affairs to his Majesty the King of 
Prussia, the following communication : 
The Government of his Majesty, the 
Bmperor of the French, not being able 
to regard the design of raising a Prus- 
sian Prince to the Throne of Spain, as 
anything but an enterprise directed 
against the territorial security of 
France, found itself under the neces- 



mar of 1870 31 

^sity of requiring from his Majesty the 
King of Prussia an assurance that such 
a combination should not be carried 
into effect without his consent. His 
Majesty, the King of Prussia, refused 
to give the assurance, and stated, on 
the contrary, to the Ambassador of his 
Majesty the Emperor, that he reserved 
to himself for that eventuality, as in 
all others, the power of taking ac- 
count of circumstances. The Imperial 
Government could not but perceive in 
that declaration on the part of the 
King, reservations which were threat- 
ening for France and the general 
halance of power in Europe. A second 
fact gave still more gravity to that 
declaration : The announcement made 
to all the Cabinets of Europe of the 
refusal to receive the Emperor's Am- 
bassador or to enter into further con- 
ferences with him. In consequence, 
the French Government felt it to be a 
duty to take steps for the immediate 
defence of its honor and interests, and 
to adopt all the measures required by 



32 Zbc 3Franco*(5ecman 

the position of affairs. Consequently, 
from this time it considers itself in a 
state of war with Prussia. 

lyE) SOURDK.'* 

The Premier also sent circulars to 
the archbishops and bishops of the 
Roman Church ; and to the heads of 
the Reformed Churches, requiring 
prayers to be offered up for the suc- 
cess of the French arms. The cir- 
cular ran as follows : 

" MoNSKiGNKUR : I request you in 
the name of his Majesty, to order public 
prayers in your diocese. Put France, 
and her Chief, and the noble child 
about to go to war before the required 
age, under the protection of Him who 
holds in His hands the ordering of 
battles and the destinies of nations. 
And at the moment that our heroic 
army sets out on its march, pray God 
that He will bless our arms, and that 
He will permit a glorious and durable 
peace soon to succeed to the pains and 
the sufferings caused by war. 



TKHar of 1870 33 

"Accept, Monseigneur, the assur- 
ance of my high esteem. 

*'feMII.K OlvIVIKR." 

The above document was dated July 
26, 1870. 

The circular addressed to the Re- 
formed Churches was slightly different 
from the above. 

The lycgislative Body made the fol- 
lowing address to the Kmperor Na- 
poleon on the occasion of declaring 
war: its President, M. Schneider, 
acting as spokesman : 

"SiRK: The I^egislative Body has 
terminated its labor, after voting all 
the subsidies and laws necessary for 
the defence of the country. Thus the 
Chamber has united in an effective 
proof of patriotism. The real author 
of war is not he by whom it is de- 
clared, but he who renders it neces- 
sary. There will be but one voice 
among the people of both hemispheres, 
throwing the responsibiHty upon Prus- 



34 Zbc afcanco:s(5ecman 

sia, which, intoxicated by unexpect- 
ed success, and encouraged by our 
patience and our desire to preserve 
to Europe the blessings of peace, 
has imagined that she could conspire 
against our security and wound our 
honor with impunity. Under these 
circumstances, France will know how 
to do her duty. The most ardent 
■wishes will follow you to the army, 
the command of which you assume, 
accompanied by your son, who, 
anticipating the duties of maturer 
age, will learn, by your side, how to 
serve his country. Behind you — ^be- 
hind our army, accustomed to carry 
the noble flag of France — stands the 
i^hole nation ready to recruit it. 
I^eave the Regency, without anxiety, 
in the hands of our august Sovereign, 
the Empress. To the authority com- 
manded by her great qualities, of 
which ample evidence has already 
been given, her Majesty will add the 
strength now afforded by the liberal 
institutions so gloriously inaugurated 



mac of 1870 35 

by your Majesty. Sire, the heart of 
the whole nation is with you, and 
with your valiant army." 

The Bmperor made the following 
reply : 

' ' I experience the most lively satis- 
faction, on the eve of my departure 
for the army, at being able to thank 
you for the patriotic support which 
you have afforded my government. 
A war is right when it is waged with 
the assent of the country, and the ap- 
proval of the country's representatives. 
You do right to remember the words 
of Montesquieu, that ' the real author 
of war is not he by whom it is de- 
clared, but he who renders it neces- 
sary.' We have done all in our power 
to avert the war, and I may say that 
it is the whole nation that has, by its 
irresistible impulses, dictated our de- 
cisions. I confide to you the Empress, 
who will call you around her, if cir- 
cumstances should require it. She 



36 Xlbc ^ranco»0erman 

will know how to fulfil courageously 
the duty which her position imposes 
upon her. I take my son with me : 
in the midst of the army he will learn 
to serve his country. Resolved ener- 
getically to pursue the great mission 
which has been entrusted to me, I 
have faith in the success of our arms : 
for I know that behind me France 
has arisen to her feet, and that God 
protects her." 

On July 20th, the French Govern- 
ment issued the following declara- 
tion concerning Prussian interests in 
France : 

"The Emperor has determined, on 
the suggestion of his Excellency, the 
Minister for Foreign Affairs, that the 
subjects of Prussia, and of the allies 
affording her armed assistance against 
us, who are now in France or her 
colonies, shall be allowed to remain 
as long as their conduct affords no 
grounds for complaint. 



•Mar or 1870 37 

' ' The admission into French terri- 
tory of subjects of Prussia and her 
allies, is from the present date subject 
to special authorizations, which shall 
only be granted exceptionally. 

*' With regard to the enemy's mer- 
chant vessels now in the ports of the 
Empire, or which may enter them in 
ignorance of the state of war, his Maj- 
esty has been pleased to order that 
they shall be allowed a period of thirty 
days to leave those ports. Safe con- 
ducts will be given to them to enable 
them freely to return to those ports to 
which they belong, or to go direct to 
the port of their destination. 

' ' Vessels which shall have shipped 
cargoes for French ports, and on 
French account in the enemy's or neu- 
tral ports previous to the declaration 
of war, are not subjects to capture. 
They may freely discharge their 
freight in the ports of the Empire, 
and will receive safe conducts to re- 
turn to the ports to which they 
belong." 



38 Zbc 3Francoss(3erman 

The King of Prussia opened the 
Parliament of the North-German Con- 
federation in person on the 19th of 
July, and, in a speech from the throne 
he informed the House of the rupture 
with France. Information of the dec- 
laration of war was given to Count 
Bismarck on the same day. The Par- 
liament, in reply, made the following 
address : 

" Most Skrene I^ord ! Most Gra- 
cious King and Sovkrkign ! 

"The sublime words which your 
Majesty has addressed to us in the 
name of the Confederated Govern- 
ments, meet with a powerful response 
among the German people. 

*'One thought, one will, moves the 
German heart at this moment. 

''The nation is filled with joy- 
ous pride at the great sternness and 
high honor with which your Majesty 
treated the unheard-of demands of the 
enemy, who thought to humble us, 



TDClar of 1870 39 

and who invades the Fatherland with 
ill-considered pretexts. 

" The German people have no other 
wish than to live in peace and 
friendship with all nations that re- 
spect the honor and independence of 
Germany. 

** As in the celebrated times of the 
wars of independence, so does Napo- 
leon force us again to-day into sacred 
strife for our rights and liberties. 

*' All calculations of the moral force 
and determined will of the German 
people, based upon the meanness and 
perfidy of mankind, are now, as form- 
erly, brought into disgrace. 

" That portion of the French people, 
led astray through jealousy and am- 
bition, will learn too late the terrible 
results that await all nations that en- 
gage in bloody strife. 

''The cautious policy of our people 
has not succeeded in preventing the 
crime directed against the welfare of 
the French, and the friendly relations 
of the two nations. 



40 tTbe 3fi:ancos!(5crman 

" Germany knows that a great and 
terrible conflict awaits her. 

' * We confide in the bravery and 
patriotism of our armed brethren, 
on the unshaken determination of a 
united people, to venture all temporal 
goods, and not to suffer the foreign 
conqueror to bend the neck of the 
German citizen. 

' ' We confide in the guidance of the 
gray hero-king, the German general 
whom Providence has appointed to 
lead to a decisive end in the evening 
of his life the great struggle which he 
fought as a youth, half a century ago. 

"We trust in God, whose justice 
punishes bloody transgressions. 

' ' From the shores of the seas to the 
foot of the Alps the people have risen 
at the call of their patriotic princes. 

* ' No sacrifice is too great for them. 

'' Public opinion throughout the 
world recognizes the justice of our 
cause. 

' ' Friendly nations behold in our 
victory their deliverance from the 



TKHar of 1870 41 

weighty oppression of the Bonaparte 
domination and the expiation of the 
wrongs perpetrated on them. 

"The German people will finally 
find on the victorious battle-field — 
ground valued by all nations — a more 
peaceful and independent unity. 

' 'Your Majesty and the Confederated 
Governments find us prepared, like 
our brethren in the South. 

' ' It touches your honor and our 
freedom. 

" It touches the tranquillity of Eu- 
Tope, and the welfare of the people. 
' ' In deep reverence we remain, 
"Your royal Majesty, 
' * Most loyally and faithfully, 
"The Reichstag of the North 
German Confederation . ' ' 

The King, before leaving for the 
war, issued the following proclama- 
tion : 

' ' I am compelled to draw the sword 
in consequence of a wanton attack. 



42 ^be 3Prancos:(5erman 

which must be warded o£f with all the 
strength at the command of Germany. 
It is a great consolation to me before 
God and man, that I have not in any- 
way given occasion for the onslaught. 
My conscience is clear as to the right 
of this war, and I am confident before 
God of the justice of our cause. The 
conflict is earnest, and it will entail 
heavy sacrifices on my people, and on 
Germany at large. But I depart for 
war, looking up to an all-knowing 
God, and appealing to His all-power- 
ful help. Already I have occasion to 
thank God that, at the first whisper 
of war, all German hearts were ani- 
mated by one feeling : a feeling of in- 
dignation at the attack, and of glad 
trustfulness that God would grant 
victory to the rightful cause. My 
people will stand by me in this con- 
flict as they stood by my father, who 
now rests in God. With me they will 
make any sacrifice to restore peace to 
the nations. From my youth up I 
have learnt to confide in the omnipo- 



mar of 1870 43 

tence of God's gracious help. In Him 
I hope, and I call on my people to 
have a like confidence in Him. I bow- 
before God in acknowledgment of His 
mercy, and I am convinced that my 
subjects will do likewise. For this 
reason, I appoint that Wednesday, the 
27th of July, be kept as an extraor- 
dinary general day of prayer, when 
Divine service will be held in the 
churches, and public business shall 
be suspended in so far as the pressing 
necessity of the time shall permit. I 
also appoint that, during the continu- 
ance of the war, in every public Divine 
service, prayers shall be offered up that 
God may lead us to victory, that He 
may be merciful even to our enemies, 
and that He may graciously conduct 
us to a peace that will secure the 
honor and the lasting independence of 
Germany. 

" W11.1.1AM. 
"Be)ri,in, July 21, 1870." 

The leading states of Europe de- 



44 ^be 3Franco*(5erman 

Glared themselves neutral. Belgium, 
Holland, and Switzerland at first sent 
troops to their frontiers to defend their 
neutrality. Some excitement was cre- 
ated by the alleged discovery of a secret 
treaty between France and Prussia — 
before the war had fairly begun — said 
to have been drawn up in 1864, in 
which France agreed not to oppose the 
unification of Germany, while the 
Prussians were to support France in 
annexing the kingdom of Belgium and 
the Grand Duchy of lyuxembourg. 
The difl&culty in accounting for this 
treaty was, that it was in the hand- 
writing of Benedetti (the French Am- 
bassador at the Court of Berlin), and 
in the possession of Bismarck, which 
gave it an appearance of genuineness. 
But the indifferent French of the origi- 
nal, combined with other mistakes, 
caused its genuineness to be doubted. 
Bismarck maintained that Benedetti 
offered to make such a treaty with 
Prussia, on behalf of the French Gov- 
ernment : while Benedetti affirmed 



"Omac of 1870 45 

tliat one day, being in conversation 
with Bismarck, at his request, he 
(Benedetti) took down the heads of a 
treaty, and left it with him. This, 
however, is a digression, as the subject 
did not loom up again during the war. 

At the end of July, the hostile arm- 
ies were moving to the frontiers of 
France and Germany and each was 
nominally commanded by its respective 
sovereign in person. The South Ger- 
man States had, after a momentary 
hesitation, declared their adhesion to 
the national cause ; so that Germany 
now presented an unbroken front to 
the French. 

The Emperor Napoleon issued the 
following proclamation at Metz, July 
28th, on taking the command of the 
Army of the Rhine : 

"I place myself at your head, to 
defend the honor of the nation. You 
will fight one of the best armies in 
Europe : though other armies, equally 



46 XLbc 3franco*(5erman 

able, could not withstand you. The 
struggle will to-day be equal. The 
war will be long and painful, but noth- 
ing surpasses the tenacious bravery of 
the soldiers who fought in Africa, in 
the Crimea, in Italy, and in Mexico. 
Whichever way we turn, beyond the 
boundaries of our country, we find 
continually the glorious footsteps of 
our forefathers, and we will show our- 
selves worthy of them. All France 
follows you with her best wishes ; the 
world has its eyes fixed upon you ; 
upon your success hang the destinies 
of freedom and civilization. I^et each 
one do his duty, and the God of Battles 
will be on our side ! ' ' 

Bach belligerent thus claimed to be 
fighting for right, justice, and liberty. 

Before leaving Paris, the Emperor 
had appointed his consort, the Em- 
press, Regent of the Empire during 
his absence. He was accompanied to 
the theatre of war by the Prince Im- 
perial, a boy of fourteen, whom he 
wished to accustom to war. 



Mar of 1870 47 

Under the French Emperor were 
three marshals, who were probably the 
real leaders of the army. Foremost 
among these was Marshal MacMahon. 
He was of Irish extraction, and was 
born in 1808 ; he was consequently 
sixty-two years of age at the outbreak 
of the war. He had already served in 
Africa and the Crimea, and likewise 
in Lombardy. Marshal Canrobert, 
born in 1809, who took command of 
the Sixth Corps, had served in Algeria, 
and, as a general of division, in the 
Crimean War. The Second and Fifth 
Corps were commanded respectively 
by Froissard and Failly, Marshal 
Bazaine, who took command of the 
Fourth Corps, had served in Mexico. 

The King of Prussia took the field 
in person at the head of his army ; 
but the real director of the military 
movements was Count von Moltke, a 
Dane by birth, and a veteran of long 
experience, who continued till the end 
of the war the chief military adviser 
of the Prussian monarch. The Crown 



48 Ebe f ranco*(5erman 

Prince of Prussia was appointed to the 
command of the South German con- 
tingents. Prince Frederic Charles, — 
the King's nephew, known as the Red 
Prince, — Von Rittenfeld, Von Falken- 
stein, Manteuffel, and Steinmetz, were 
among the other principal command- 
ers. Some of them were born in the 
times of the French Revolution. Count 
Bismarck also followed the army, 
though he took no command. 

Germany was able to put in the 
field 1,100,000 men ; France was able 
to put in the field only 600,000 men. 
Though the military force of Germany 
was thus nearly double that of France, 
yet, as the Southern states wavered 
for a moment, it was expected that 
the French generals would take ad- 
vantage of this hesitation, by making 
a sudden raid into Southern Germany, 
thereby alienating them from Prussia. 
This might have secured Austria (still 
smarting under the defeat of 1866) and 
Italy. It was in general looked upon 
as a matter of course that the French 



Timar ot 1870 49 

arms would be successful in the begin- 
ning of the war, even by many who 
thought they would not be ultimately 
successful. Had the French Emperor 
been able to follow out this plan, he 
might have influenced in a great 
measure the subsequent course of the 
war. For a week or more after the 
French Emperor had issued his procla- 
mation to the army, all Europe was 
awaiting the movements of the hostile 
armies with breathless anxiety. 

In the meantime, the German troops, 
both of the Northern and Southern 
Confederations, were enabled to as- 
semble ; and soon after the ist of 
August, they were all at the seat of 
war. The two armies stood confront- 
ing each other all along the frontier 
of France and Germany between Swit- 
zerland and Belgium. 

Before the actual outbreak of hos- 
tilities, the Prussians blew up the rail- 
way bridge between Strasburg and 
Kehl, on the Rhine ; thereby prevent- 
ing the bridge from being used for the 



50 XLbc 3Ft:ancos(5erman 

transport of French troops across the 
Rhine. 

It was afterwards explained that the 
continued inaction of the Emperor 
Napoleon was due to the fact that the 
forces on which he was counting were 
not forthcoming, thus forcing him to 
remain in Metz longer than he in- 
tended. He had at first proposed 
marching with 250,000 men that were 
to have assembled at Metz and Stras- 
burg into Southern Germany in order 
to secure the neutrality of that Con- 
federation ; after which they were to 
march against the Prussians. In the 
meantime, 50,000 men under Marshal 
Canrobert were to protect the north- 
eastern frontier. In point of fact, only 
100,000 had assembled at Metz, and 
40,000 at Strasburg, instead of 150,- 
000 which were awaited at the former 
place, and 100,000 at the latter. 

On the 2d of August the first shot 
of the campaign was fired by a 
French division, under General Ba- 
taille, who attacked and carried the 



mar of X870 51 

Heights of Spicheren, in the neighbor- 
hood of Saarbruck, a Prussian town 
near the frontier. The battle lasted 
about three hours. The Prussians re- 
tired upon their next line of defence : 
the French, after the battle, appear 
to have withdrawn across their own 
border to Metz. Some importance was 
attached to this battle, as it was fought 
in the presence of the Kmperor and the 
Prince Imperial ; the latter was said to 
have received his baptism of fire in this 
battle. This success, small as it was, 
was almost the only one on the French 
side during the whole course of the war. 
For the German forces being assem- 
bled about this time, they took the 
offensive soon after the battle of Saar- 
bruck, and advanced into the French 
territory. The Crown Prince of Prus- 
sia, with 40,000 men under him, ad- 
vanced upon Weissenburg, a French 
town near the frontier, in which neigh- 
borhood they found a division of the 
French army under General Douay. 
The division consisted of the 74th and 



52 Zbc 3francos(5entian 

50th regiments of the line, the i6th 
battalion of foot, a regiment of Tur- 
cos, and one of mounted Chasseurs. 
The Crown Prince came upon them 
unexpectedly on the morning of the 
4th, and at once attacked them. The 
French fought vigorously, and main- 
tained the unequal conflict (the Prus- 
sians having the advantage of numbers) 
during the greater part of the day ; 
leaving tents, baggage, etc. in the 
hands of the enemy, they lost 800 
prisoners, and had their commander, 
Douay, killed in the field. 

Marshal MacMahon, commander- 
in-chief of the army to which this 
division belonged, was then at Metz, 
attending a council of war ; he no 
sooner heard of the French defeat than 
he hastened to join his army, and with 
50,000 men encamped near Woerth, a 
little farther in the interior of France 
than Weissenburg. 

The Crown Prince advanced with 
130,000 troops from Weissenburg, and 
attacked MacMahon on the 6th. The 



mar of 1870 53 

battle was fought with great vigor on 
both sides, and ended, like the former, 
in the total rout and defeat of the 
French, who lost 10,000 men put hors 
de combat, and 7000 taken prisoners: 
4000 being taken in battle, and the 
remainder during the pursuit. The 
German loss was 7000 put hors de 
combat. 

On that same day, Saarbruck was 
evacuated by the French. A battle 
fought on the Heights of Spicheren, 
near Saarbruck, resulted, likewise, in 
the defeat of the French : but in this 
case, the French had the numerical 
advantage. The French army concen- 
trated in Metz on the loth. 

During this time, great commotion 
prevailed in Paris. A report was cir- 
culated on the 6th that Marshal Mac- 
Mahon had gained a great victory over 
the Germans, and had captured the 
Crown Prince and his army. This 
caused great excitement : but when it 
was found that the news was false, a 
reaction set in. The defeat of the 



54 ^be 3franco==(5erman 

French was announced by telegram 
by the Emperor Napoleon, who added : 
' ' All may yet be well. ' ' These events 
resulted in the resignation of the Oli- 
vier Ministry, and in the formation of 
a new one, with Count Pelikas as 
Premier. The premiership of the 
Count was necessarily short-lived, be- 
ing overthrown with the Empire in 
September. The demand of the peo- 
ple for arms, was complied with, and 
the Department of the Seine was at 
once declared in a state of siege. The 
great excitement that prevailed also 
made the populace suspicious of stran- 
gers, and the cry of ' ' spy ' ' was con- 
tinually raised against foreigners, and 
it was as continually proving false. 

The defeats of the French were made 
known to them by the Ministers in 
Paris, in the following proclamation : 

' ' FRKNCHM:eN ! We have told you 
the whole truth : it is now for you to 
do your duty. Let one single cry 
issue from the breasts of all, from one 



TKnar of 1870 55 

end of France to the other. Let the 
whole people rise, quivering, and 
sworn to fight the great fight. Some 
of our regiments have succumbed to 
overwhelming numbers, but our army 
has not been vanquished. The same 
intrepid breath still animates it : let us 
support it. To a momentarily success- 
ful audacity, we will oppose a union 
which conquers destiny. I^t us fall 
back upon ourselves, and our invaders 
shall hurl themselves against a ram- 
part of human breasts. As in 1792 
and at Sebastapol, let our reverses be 
the school of our victories. It would 
be a crime to doubt for an instant the 
safety of our country, and a greater still 
not to do our part to secure it. Up, 
then, up ! and you, inhabitants of the 
Centre, the North, and the South, upon 
whom the burden of the war does not 
fall, hasten with unanimous enthusi- 
asm to the rescue of your brethren in 
the Bast. I^et France, united in suc- 
cess, be still more united in adversity. 
And may God bless our arms." 



56 ^be 3franco*(3erman 

The Government followed up this 
proclamation by active measures for 
the prosecution of the war. They 
asked for more men, calling out all 
citizens under forty for the services of 
the National Guards who were to de- 
fend the capital, and repair the fortifi- 
cations. The people seem to have 
been confident as to the ultimate issue 
of the war, as the following extract, 
taken from a Parisian journal after the 
first defeat, shows : 

* ' There exist in the life of nations 
solemn and decisive moments in which 
God gives them an opportunity of 
showing what they are and of what 
they are capable. That hour has 
come for France. It has sometimes 
been asserted that, though intrepid in 
the dash of success, the great nation 
supports reverses with difiiculty . What 
is now passing before us gives the lie 
to this calumny. The attitude of the 
people is not one of discouragement : 
it is one of sublime and patriotic rage 



Mac of 1870 57 

against the invaders of France, who 
in France must find a tomb. 

' ' All Frenchmen will rise, like one 
man : they remember their ancestors 
and their children : behind them they 
see centuries of glory : before them a 
future that their heroism shall render 
free and powerful. Never before has 
our country been better prepared for 
self-devotion and sacrifice : never has 
it shown in a more imposing and mag- 
nificent manner the vigor and pride of 
the national character. It shouts with 
enthusiasm : ' Up ! To arms ! ' ' To 
conquer or to die, ' is its motto. 

' ' While our soldiers heroically de- 
fend the soil of France, Europe is 
justly uneasy at the successes of Prus- 
sia. People ask themselves to what 
lengths the ambition of that insatiable 
Power would carry her, if she were 
intoxicated with a decisive triumph. 

"It is an invariable law of history, 
that any nation which, by unbounded 
covetousness, disturbs the general equi- 
librium, challenges a reaction against 



58 JLbe 3franco:=(5erman 

its victories, and turns all other coun- 
tries into opponents. This truth can- 
not fail to be demonstrated by the 
results. Who is interested in the re- 
surrection of the German Empire? 
Who desires the Baltic to become a 
Prussian lake ? Can it be Sweden, 
Norway, or Denmark ? countries that 
a Prussian triumph would annihilate ! 
Can it be Russia — Russia, which is 
interested more than any other Power 
in saving the equilibrium of the North 
against German covetousness ? Can 
it be England, which, as a great mari- 
time Power, and as the protector of 
Denmark, is opposed to the progress 
of the Prussian navy ? Can it be Hol^ 
land, which is already so much threat- 
ened by the audacious intrigues of 
Count Bismarck ? With regard to Aus- 
tria, the restoration of the German Em- 
pire to the advantage of the House of 
Hohenzollern would be the most fatal 
blow, not only to the dynasty of the 
Hapsburgs, but to the existence of the 
Austro-Hungarian Monarchy. Prussia 



mar of 1870 59 

will certainly attempt to make prom- 
ises to the Cabinet of Vienna : but it 
is well known what faith can be placed 
in the word of Count Bismarck. Can 
any pretended guaranty ever be 
stronger than the ties which united 
Prussia to the Germanic Confederation, 
and which Prussia, contemning all her 
duties, and obligations, so violently 
tore asunder? The decisive victory 
of the Hohenzollems would not be less 
fatal to Italy than to Austria. A Ger- 
manic Empire would at any price wish 
to acquire a sea-board. It would want 
one in the south as well as in the 
north, and would demand Venice and 
Trieste, as well as Kiel and Amster- 
dam. Thus the regeneration of Italy 
would be compromised. 

' ' We appeal with confidence to the 
wisdom of governments and nations 
to root Prussian despotism out of Eu- 
rope, to aid us, either by alliance or 
sympathy, in saving the European 
equilibrium. There is good ground 
already for noting the favorable 



^o ^be 3Pranco*(5ei:man 

symptoms apparent in England, which 
country is fully satisfied with the dec- 
larations we have so categorically 
and loyally given with regard to Bel- 
gian neutrality, protecting as it does 
our northern frontier, and which she 
shows herself ready to defend, on the 
side of Belgium, should Prussia wish 
to violate that country's territory. 
Sweden, Norway, and Denmark show 
an attitude trembling with patriotism. 
The Emperor of Russia honors our 
Ambassador with his particular good 
will, and the best authorized organs 
of the Russian press hold a language 
unfavorable to the Prussian cause. 
Those Vienna journals which at first 
timidly manifested some sympathy 
with Count Bismarck are compelled 
to give way before public opinion, and 
now speak in terms harmonizing with 
the true interests of Austria. The 
Emperor Francis Joseph, the King of 
Italy, and their governments, manifest 
dispositions more and more satisfactory 
towards us. Austria and Italy are 



mar of 1870 6i 

actively arming. The Ministers of 
Vienna and Pesth obey a united im- 
pulse, and the moment approaches 
when Prussia will encounter from that 
quarter the most serious and grave 
embarrassments. Our diplomacy will 
not be less active than our army. 
France is making a supreme effort, and 
our patriotism rises equal to every 
danger. The more serious the cir- 
cumstances, so much the more will 
the nation be energetic. All divisions 
cease, and the French press unani- 
mously expresses the most practical 
and the most noble ideas. 

' ' The concurrence of the Senate 
and the I^egislative Body is about to 
lend fresh strength to our troops : and 
the French of 1870 will show the 
people of Europe that we have not 
degenerated." 

At the beginning of the war each of 
the belligerents was confident of being 
ultimately victorious. The French 
had no doubt of success ; and it was 



62 Zbc 3franco*(5erman 

generally supposed, from their acknow- 
ledged military superiority, and the 
impetuosity of their character, that, on 
whichever side the fortune of war 
should ultimately incline, the French 
would have the advantage of the first 
victories. 

But no sooner had the war fairly 
begun, than victory after victory was 
announced on the German side. One 
army, commanded by the King of 
Prussia in person, and Count von 
Moltke, followed the French Imperial 
Army, commanded by the Bmperor. 
While the French army was being 
driven by the enemy into the interior, 
and was keeping near the frontier, the 
Army of Southern Germany, under 
the command of the Crown Prince, 
struck into the interior ; but its pro- 
gress was kept more secret than that 
of the army commanded by the King. 

The French army continued its re- 
treat. Resigning the command of the 
troops stationed at Metz to Marshal 
Eazaine, the Kmperor retired to the 



Mac ot 1870 63 

camp at Chalons. During the third 
week of August, three battles were 
fought in the vicinity of Metz. The 
Prussians attacked the French in the 
neighborhood of Courcelles, a small 
village at some distance from Metz, on 
the 14th. The losses on both sides 
were immense : and both sides claimed 
the victory. On the i6th the Third 
Prussian Corps attacked the French 
troops, who were commanded by Frois- 
sard. Notwithstanding their enormous 
loss, which amounted to 16,000 men, 
the Germans gained the victory, captur- 
ing 7 guns, 2000 prisoners, and driv- 
ing Bazaine back seven miles towards 
Gravelotte. Here, on the 17th and 
1 8th, a third and equally decisive 
battle, favorable to the Prussians, was 
fought between the two armies. 

The result of these battles was to 
blockade Marshal Bazaine and his 
troops in Metz, from the 22d of August 
until the end of October. In order to 
prevent MacMahon, who, at the head of 
100,000 men, was to advance to the 



64 Zbc 3Franco*(5erman 

relief of Bazaine, from taking up a de- 
fensive position to the north of Chalons, 
a considerable portion of the German 
army, under the Crown Princes of 
Saxony and Prussia, was sent to hold 
him in check. MacMahon took up his 
position in the Vaux, where, on the 
30th of August, he was attacked by 
the enemy, and defeated, with the loss 
of 7000 men and 20 guns. He and 
his army, with the Kmperor, then re- 
treated to Sedan. 

Next to the siege of Paris, that of 
Sedan must be regarded as the most 
important of the war, not in its length 
(it was of short duration), but in the 
magnitude of its results. The same 
fatality that followed the French army 
since the beginning of the war was 
against it at Sedan. On September 
I St, a general action took place around 
Sedan, the French being defeated : 
20,000 prisoners were taken by the 
enemy ; thousands fled across the Bel- 
gian frontier. In these conflicts, Mac- 
Mahon himself, was wounded ; being 



IKHar ot 1 870 65 

unable to retain his command in con- 
sequence, the leadership of the French 
forces was assumed, early on the 2d, 
by Wimpffen, who had hurried from 
Aj&ica for the purpose. He was 
obliged that same day to sign a cap- 
itulation, surrendering his whole army 
— 80,000 in all — as prisoners of war to 
the Germans. 

The Emperor Napoleon is said to 
have exposed his person in these 
conflicts round Sedan, evidently court- 
ing death. On the 2d, the day of the 
capitulation, he sent his sword to the 
King of Prussia, requesting an inter- 
view. The interview was held at the 
Chateau of Frenois, after the signing 
of the capitulation. The French mon- 
arch refused to discuss politics, de- 
claring that the Germans must treat 
with the Empress Regent and the 
Government at Paris, who, as his 
representatives, had full powers to 
sign a treaty ; he also declared that his 
surrender was purely personal. The 
King appointed him his residence at 



66 ^bc 3Franco*(5ecman 

Wilhelmshoehe Palace, formerly the 
dwelling of the Electors of Cassel, and 
also, in the reign of Napoleon I., of 
the King of Westphalia, uncle of 
Napoleon III. The Kmperor left for 
the palace on September 3d. 

The news of this event was not long 
in being confirmed. It reached Paris 
on the 4th, and caused great excite- 
ment. A crowd of the populace rushed 
into the hall where the Corps Ligis- 
latif was sitting, and demanded the 
proclamation of the Republic. The 
President of the Corps Legislaiif left 
the chair, and most of the members left 
the House. Those who remained ex- 
ported the people to respect the free- 
dom of legislative deliberation : but 
the only answer was, " Vive la Ri- 
puhlique ! ' ' The surrender of the 
Emperor was repudiated by the crowd, 
among whom was repeatedly heard 
the cry, *'An Kmperor dies, but 
does not surrender ! ' ' Finally the 
crowd and the remaining members of 
the House dispersed, and at four that 



Mar of X870 67 

same afternoon, the Republic was pro- 
claimed from the steps of the H6tel de 
Ville, before an immense crowd, by 
M. Gambetta, a member of the Corps 
Ligislatif^ and always a staunch Re- 
publican. Gambetta at once leaped 
into notice, and became the virtual 
ruler of France for the remainder of 
the war, as a member of the Provisional 
Government, which was installed on 
September 4th ; it contained the fol- 
lowing members : 

General Trochu, President of the 
Council ; M. Gambktta, Minister of 
the Interior ; Juleps FavrK, Minister 
of Foreign Affairs ; Count Kera- 
TRY, Prefect of Police ; JuLKS Simon, 
RocHKFORT, JUI.BS Ferry, Ernest 
PiCARD, Ernest Pei.i.etan, and 
Arage, Mayor of Paris. Trochu had 
been appointed by the Kmperor Mili- 
tary Governor of Paris, and a few days 
before the events spoken of above, 
he had refused the appointment of 
Dictator of France tendered him by 
the Legislature, on the ground that 



68 Zbc 3franco*0erman 

existing circumstances did not permit 
it : though he afterwards acted in con- 
cert with the Republic, and retained 
his post as Military Governor of Paris 
throughout the war. Rochefort, whose 
name appears as a member of the Gov- 
ernment, though he exercised but little 
influence on the course of affairs, was 
liberated on that eventful day from 
the confinement to which his seditious 
proceedings against the Emperor dur- 
ing the previous winter had subjected 
him. The Empress Regent, refusing 
to resort to violence to uphold the 
Imperial Government, at once fled 
from the Tuileries, and, joining the 
Prince Imperial in Belgium, went with 
him to England, and settled down at 
Chiselhurst. The new government 
assumed the title of " Government of 
National Defence, ' ' and it was gradu- 
ally recognized throughout the whole 
of France ; though it is doubtful 
whether the country in general desired 
this change of Constitution. The 
Senate and the Corps Ligislatif met 



mai of IS70 69 

for the last time on the 4th of Sep- 
tember. ^ 

The most important of the indirect 
results of this war was the annexation 
of Rome and the surrounding country 
to the dominions of Victor Emmanuel, 
thus completing the movement for 
Italian unity, begun in 1859-60. In 
itself, it was an event of considerable 
importance, and would have been so 
regarded, but that the Franco-German 
War engrossed the attention of Europe. 
The Popes had long claimed dominion 
over the city of Rome and a large 
portion of Italy, extending through 
the centre, from the Mediterranean to 
the Gulf of Venice, as their temporal 
sovereignty . These acquisitions, 
known as the States of the Church, 
they had obtained, by gift or other- 
wise, at various times in the Middle 
Ages, beginning with the reign of 
Pepin, King of France. The temporal, 
as well as the spiritual, authority of 
the Popes was great during the Middle 



70 Xlbc 3Fraiico»(5crman 

Ages, though they had been declining 
gradually since the Reformation. 

In the movement which culminated 
in the union of the Italian peninsula 
into one kingdom under Victor Em- 
manuel (then King of Sardinia), in 
1859-60, the eastern districts of the 
States of the Church joined the new 
monarchy, while the city of Rome and 
the adjoining territory remained under 
the dominion of the Pope. This was 
due, not to the attachment of the 
people to the temporal sovereignty 
of the Pope (for they were averse to it, 
and were strongly desirous of political 
union with the rest of Italy), but to 
the Emperor Napoleon III., who sup- 
ported the pretensions of the reigning 
Pontiff, though the union of the rest 
of Italy was effected through his instru- 
mentality. How much longer the 
temporal sovereignty would have 
stood if the Emperor Napoleon had 
remained on the throne cannot, of 
course, be known ; though its eventual 
downfall was looked upon as certain. 



Mar of X870 71 

The Revolution of the 4th of Sep- 
tember hurled from power the man 
who had hitherto supported the Pope, 
and the temporal sovereignty, having 
no moral hold upon the people, at 
once fell, and resulted in the annexa- 
tion of what remained of the Papal 
States to the Italian Kingdom. A 
popular vote was taken soon after, in 
which the annexation was ratified with 
great unanimity. 

It was not until a year afterwards 
that the King of Italy entered Rome ; 
but his troops took possession of the 
city in his name before the end of 
September, 1870, almost unopposed. 
The Italian Parliament held its first 
session in Rome in the course of the 
ensuing year. 

The interest excited by the Franco- 
German War enabled Spain to choose 
and enthrone a king in comparative 
quiet. In view of the grave compli- 
cations it had led to, Prince Leopold 
was not to be thought of ; instead of a 
prince of the House of Hohenzollern, 



72 Zbc 3Francos0ennan 

Prince Amadeus, younger son of the 
King of Italy, was induced to recon- 
sider his previous declination, and to 
become a candidate for the vacant 
throne. When the Cortes met, later 
in the autumn, to elect a sovereign, 
this prince received more than the 
requisite number of votes, and he was 
accordingly declared to be duly elected 
King of Spain. The King-elect took 
possession of his throne early in Janu- 
ary, 1 87 1, but General Prim, the man 
to whom he owed his throne, and who 
had been the virtual ruler of Spain 
ever since the Revolution of Septem- 
ber, 1868, fell by an assassin's hand 
on Christmas Day, 1870, and expired 
from his wounds on New Year's Day, 
1 87 1. The new monarch, then only 
twenty-five or twenty-six years of age, 
was thus, at the commencement of 
his reign, thrown almost entirely on 
his own resources, in a countr}^ where, 
as a stranger, he must necessarily 
meet with much opposition to his 
government. 



mar of 1870 73 

The surrender of the Emperor Na- 
poleon had no effect in putting an end 
to the war, but rather prolonged it. 
The surrender, as we have stated, was 
followed by the downfall of the Re- 
genc}^ the proclamation of a Republic, 
and the establishment of a Provisional 
Government. 

Their continued success exceeded 
the most sanguine hopes of the Ger- 
mans, and thus enabled them, or 
rather encouraged them, to demand 
conditions of peace more favorable to 
themselves than they might otherwise 
have done. Peace might have been 
made at once after the capitulation of 
Sedan, had the Germans been content 
with more moderate terms, and had 
the French been in a state of mind to 
make peace. 

The conditions of peace demanded 
by Count Bismarck at the time were 
the surrender of that part of France 
formerly known as Alsace and Lor- 
raine, which had, nearly two centuries 
before, been wrested from a divided 



74 ^be 3francos'(5erman 

Germany by France under I<ouis XIV. ^ 
and which, in virtue of its Teutonic 
origin, he regarded as still the right- 
ful possession of Germany, notwith- 
standing that, by means of the policy 
of the central government, and the 
intercourse of nearly two hundred 
years, the people had become intensely 
French, both in language and feeling. 
The payment of a war indemnity was 
demanded in addition. Jules Favre, 
Minister of Foreign Affairs under the 
Provisional Government, acted as am- 
bassador on this occasion. He ob- 
jected to the proposed terms as unjust, 
declaring that Europe would never 
sanction such a treaty, and he pro- 
posed an armistice of sufficient length 
for France to elect a National Assem- 
bly, which was to assume the govern- 
ment ; this Assembly was also to be 
empowered to make a treaty with the 
Germans ; Paris, and afterwards Tours, 
was named for its sittings. Bismarck 
at first refused to hear of an armistice ;• 
but he finally consented, on condition 



•Qmar of 1870 75 

that the fortresses of Strasburg, Toul, 
Metz, and Phalsburg, should be de- 
livered into the hands of the Germans, 
who were investing those places. 
These conditions being refused by the 
French, and the Germans refusing to 
make lighter terms, there was nothing 
to do but to continue the war. The 
French would probably have consented 
to these terms, hard as they were, 
could they have foreseen the fatal ter- 
mination of the war, and the continued 
ill-fortune of their arms. Though his 
schemes were crowned with success, 
Count Bismarck lost for Germany, by 
his grasping demands, that sympathy 
that had been given her by the neutral 
public. 

The Provisional Government estab- 
lished at Paris on September 4th re- 
ceived by degrees the sanction of the 
nation, as stated above, and was gen- 
erally recognized by other Powers. 
Hopes were entertained that the es- 
tablishment of republican institutions 
would rouse the energies of the people 



76 Zbc 3franco*(5erman 

sufficiently to drive out the invader, 
though they were not destined to meet 
with the results that were anticipated. 
Nevertheless, the change of govern- 
ment did not for a moment retard the 
progress of the Germans. No sooner 
was Sedan taken, and the ex- Emperor 
Napoleon on his way to Wilhelms- 
hoehe, than the German armies con- 
tinued their march towards the French 
capital ; that is to say, such of the 
troops as were not necessary for the 
prosecution of the sieges then in pro- 
gress. The Third and Fourth German 
Army Corps, under the command of the 
Crown Princes of Prussia and Saxony, 
struck off into the heart of France, 
and secretly wound their way to Paris 
where they arrived about the end of 
September. They numbered about 
200,000 men. The King, accompanied 
by Von Moltke and Bismarck, led his 
army northwards, while Prince Fred- 
eric Charles, nicknamed the Red 
Prince, at the head of nearly 200,000 
men, kept Marshal Bazaine and an 



Mar Of 1870 77 

army nearly equally large, shut up 
within the walls of Metz, for a while 
longer. The Grand Duke of Mecklen- 
burg, at the head of an army corps, 
was investing Toul ; while General 
Werder, with 60,000 under his com- 
mand, was investing Strasburg. Toul 
was the first of these places to fall, 
and surrendered on the 28th of Sep- 
tember. Nancy fell into the hands of 
the Germans on their way to Sedan. 

The siege of Strasburg lasted about 
six weeks. This city is on the banks 
of the Rhine, opposite Kehl, in Baden, 
with which it was connected by a rail- 
way bridge ; but this bridge was de- 
stroyed immediately after the outbreak 
of the war, by the Prussians. The 
siege was undertaken about the mid- 
dle of August. The besieged city was 
heroically defended by the garrison 
during the six weeks the siege lasted 
under General Uhrich ; during which 
time much harm was done to the city. 
Public as well as private buildings suf- 
fered in the siege. The Provisional 



78 Zbc 3franco*(5ecman 

Government, shortly after its installa- 
tion, sent a mayor to govern the city. 
He entered the town, after much difl&- 
culty, on September 22d, and he was 
at once recognized by General Uhrich. 
His administration, however, lasted 
only a week ; for on the 28th, Strasburg 
was formally handed over to the Ger- 
mans. The 17,000 troops who surren- 
dered were sent into Germany, like 
those who surrendered at Sedan. 
Strasburg had been united to France 
for 189 years, almost to the very day. 
The siege of Metz was still longer 
than that of Strasburg. A French 
army, under Marshal Bazaine, con- 
centrated at Metz on August loth, and 
the German army, on its approach, 
drove the French army into the town, 
and blockaded it there so closely that 
all efforts to raise the siege proved in- 
effective. Provisions became scarce : 
as to meat, there was none during the 
last two months of the siege ; the 
place of meat was supplied by horse- 
flesh. The cavalry horses were killed 



mac of 1870 79 

for the purpose, and the price of pro- 
visions became enormous. A few- 
sorties were made by the French ; but 
they proved unsuccessful. Bazaine 
refused to recognize the new govern- 
ment ; but he continued his defence of 
Metz in the name of the Kmperor. 
Finally, on October 27th, he signed a 
capitulation, surrendering himself and 
his whole army, 173,000 strong, in- 
cluding ofl&cers, into the hands of the 
Germans. The surrendered army was 
sent into Germany. Gambetta, in an- 
nouncing this capitulation to the 
public, accused Bazaine of treachery. 
This charge was apparently believed 
by a vast majority of the French 
people ; though it was evident that 
Bazaine surrendered only from sheer 
necessity. 

Meanwhile, on September 21st, the 
German armies had completed the in- 
vestment of Paris. The principal 
event of note on the way was the 
entry of the King of Prussia into 
Rheims, on September 5th, three days 



8o tibe 3Francoss(5crman 

after the capitulation of Sedan. Two 
million inhabitants were now shut up 
in Paris. Comparatively few of these 
were native Parisians : the vast major- 
ity were Frenchmen, newly arrived 
from various parts of the country, who 
had fled to Paris for safety. Numbers 
of native Parisians left the city before 
the siege began, and took refuge in 
England. Of the two million at that 
time in Paris half a million were 
soldiers, manj^ of whom were raw 
recruits. 

General Trochu remained both the 
Civil and Military Governor of Paris 
during the siege : but so completely 
was Paris cut off from the rest of the 
world, that it was deemed necessary 
for the members of the Government to 
leave Paris, and to establish them- 
selves elsewhere. Gambetta left by 
balloon on October 7th, and alighted 
at Tours, in the north of France (where 
three members of the Government had 
preceded him), which city became for a 
time the political capital of France. 



Mar ot 1870 8i 

The only means by which Paris could 
communicate with the outer world was 
by balloons and carrier-pigeons. 

On October 5th, the King of Prussia^ 
the Crown Prince, and the heads of 
the German armies, fixed their head- 
quarters at Versailles. The King and 
the Crown Prince occupied the Palace 
of the Bourbons : a splendid palace, 
built by I^ouis XIV. , one of the greatest 
of the Bourbons, but which will here- 
after be associated with one of the 
darkest periods of French history. The 
Prussian headquarters continued to be 
at Versailles until the end of the war. 
The besiegers, though less numerous 
than the besieged army, had the ad- 
vantage of thorough discipline on their 
side, and they derived additional ad- 
vantage from the completeness with 
which they had succeeded in cutting 
off the communication of Paris with 
the rest of the country. Such troops 
as were not employed in the siege 
were occupied in overrunning the 
north of France. The great advantage 



82 ^be 3Francos=(3erman 

of Paris lay in the length of its fortifi- 
cations, which exceeded twenty-six 
miles, and in the vast number of troops 
enclosed within its walls, who, could 
they have been as well disciplined as 
their besiegers, might perhaps have 
raised the siege. The inhabitants of 
Paris remained sanguine of success 
until the end of the war. 

Meanwhile, Gambetta, whose head- 
quarters were now at Tours, mon- 
opolized the Government and was 
tacitly acknowledged by the nation as 
the chief ruler of France. By dint of 
great energy, he raised numerous, 
though undisciplined armies, and in- 
fused new hopes among the people ; 
and for a time, he overshadowed all 
contemporary Frenchmen, except per- 
haps Trochu, who, as Governor of 
Paris, naturally attracted a great deal 
of attention. The French successes, 
small and few, proved only a momen- 
tary check to the progress of the 
German arms. Many of the Parisians 



mac of 1870 83 

were discontented with the course pur- 
sued by General Trochu, as they be- 
Heved he did not make full use of the 
means at his command. The accusa- 
tion against him was substantially the 
same as that made against Bazaine and 
MacMahon, and other French com- 
manders who had been unable to re- 
sist the fate of war. How much truth 
there was in these accusations, it would 
be difficult to decide. 

While the Germans occupied some 
of their troops in the investment of 
Paris, the remainder of their armies 
was employed in the north of France, 
where they received but temporary 
checks. Soon after the establishment 
of the Republic, Garibaldi, the Italian 
general, with a few troops under him, 
offered his services to the French 
Government, which were accepted. He 
caused much embarrassment to the 
enemy, by a sort of irregular warfare. 

On October nth, the German troops 
occupied Orleans. This city was re- 
captured by the army raised by 



84 Zbc 3franco*(5crman 

Gambetta while at Tours, on November 
9th ; the army was distinguished by 
the name of the Army of the I^oire. 
It numbered two or three hundred 
thousand men, and was under the 
command of General d ' Aurelle de Pa- 
ladin. It was hoped by the French 
that this victory would be the turning- 
point of the war. The hope was doubt- 
less due to the association of Orleans 
with Jeanne d 'Arc, who, in the wars 
with the Knglish, by the unexpected 
deliverance of this very city from the 
besiegers, turned the course of vic- 
tory, by which means the invader was 
finally driven from the soil of France. 
But in this case the event did not an- 
swer the anticipations ; the city was 
recaptured by the German invaders on 
December 4th, and remained in their 
hands until the end of the war. 

The towns of Soissons and Schele- 
stadt both surrendered before the end 
of October ; Verdun, Neu-Breisach, 
Thionville, I^a Fere, and Amiens, all 
capitulated in the month of November. 



Mar of 1870 85 

Meanwhile, several sorties were at- 
tempted by the army besieged in Paris. 
The most important of these sorties 
was on the last day of November. 
Ninety thousand men, under the com- 
mand of Trochu and Ducrot, left Paris, 
attacking the Wurtembergers and Sax- 
ons, and capturing Champigny, Brie, 
and Villiers. Another sortie was made 
on December 21st, in which the French 
were repulsed. A third great sortie 
was made on January 19th, of 100,000 
men, under Generals Trochu and 
Ducrot, in which the French, after 
gaining some advantages, were obliged 
to retreat. As the closeness of the 
siege prevented all access to Paris, the 
famine necessarily increased. The sup- 
ply of animals generally used for food 
finally ceased, and in their stead, the 
besieged made use of their war horses, 
dogs, and other animals. The mortal- 
ity rose to a fearful rate, owing to the 
scarcity of even indifferent food. 

About the middle of autumn, a 
movement began to be made in 



86 Zbc 3Franco!=(5ermau 

Germany for crowning the gray -haired 
King of Prussia (he was then seventy- 
three years of age) Kmperor of Ger- 
many. The same offer had been made 
to the King's brother, and predeces- 
sor, in 1848, but it was not accepted. 
The present King, however, accepted 
the imperial crown in December. 
The ceremony of inauguration, how- 
ever, did not take place until January 
18, 1871. This date had been chosen 
by the King on account of its being 
the anniversary of the day on which 
his ancestor, Frederic I., had mounted 
the throne of Prussia in 1700, changing 
his title from Elector of Brandenburg, 
which he had inherited from his own 
ancestors, for that of King of Prussia. 
The ceremony of inaugurating Wil- 
liam I., King of Prussia, as Kmperor 
of Germany, took place in the Palace 
of the Bourbons, at Versailles, in the 
presence of the officers and flower of 
the German army, the German Par- 
liament, and several of the German 
princes. It must have been a great 



Mar ot 1870 87 

humiliation to the French people, that 
the splendid palace built by one of her 
greatest monarchs should be rendered 
memorable as being the scene where a 
hostile sovereign ascended the throne 
of a new and powerful confederation 
on her borders. 

This event was, in itself, one of his- 
toric importance. By this act the two 
Confederations of North and South 
Germany were formed into one, on 
the federal principle of a common par- 
liament, a common army, diplomatic 
unity, etc., while the admission of the 
hereditary transmission of the crown 
was calculated to prevent the evils due 
to the elective principle of the former 
German Empire. The boundaries of 
the new Empire are not quite identical 
with those of the old one, seeing that 
they exclude German Austria and 
include non-German Prussia, being 
such provinces as Prussia acquired in 
the partition of Poland, and in which 
Polish is the common language. The 
annexation of Alsace and lyorraine 



88 XLbc 3ftanco*(3erman 

made Germany rather larger than was 
France before the war. It is, of course, 
too soon as yet to pronounce the union 
of Germany in one state a success ; 
but it is to be wished that this union 
should prove as completely successful 
as the friends of Germany could desire. 
It remains to be seen if it can stand the 
test of time, and whether it will sur- 
vive the warriors and statesmen, many 
of whom are now far advanced in life, 
who were most instrumental in found- 
ing it. 

We must now go back in our history 
as far as the recapture of Orleans by 
the Germans. On the day following 
the recapture, Count Von Moltke ad- 
dressed the following note to General 
Trochu, sending it to him through a 
parliamentaire : 

'* VerSaii,i,ES, Dec. 5th. 

' ' It may be useful to inform your 

Kxcellency that the Army of the I^oire 

was defeated yesterday near Orleans, 

and that the town is reoccupied by the 



TKaar of 1870 89 

German troops. Should, however, 
your Excellency deem it expedient to 
be convinced of the fact through one 
of your own officers, I will not fail to 
provide him with a safe-conduct to 
come and return. 

"Receive, General, the expression 
of the high consideration with which 
I have the honor to be, your very 
humble and obedient servant, 

"The Chief of the Staff, 
" Von M01.TKE)." 

General Trochu received the mes- 
senger affably, and brought the note 
the same day before the Council of 
Ministers for discussion. One of the 
Ministers thought that advantage 
ought to be taken of the occasion to 
discuss the possibilities of concluding 
an honorable peace ; but the General 
urged that the Germans were in a 
hostile country in midwinter; that 
the late victory of the enemy might 
have been exaggerated ; that help 
might come from the provinces ; that 



90 XLbc 3franco*(5erman 

Paris might yet hold out for a con-^ 
siderable titae ; and that their arms 
might yet successfully end the war ; 
therefore the war should be continued. 
At this time, great confidence was 
felt, both in the Army of the lyoire, 
reputed to be two or three hundred 
thousand strong, and in the heroism 
of the people of Paris. The General's 
advice was accepted by the Council, 
and the following reply was accord- 
ingly sent to Von Moltke by the mes- 
senger : 

" Paris, Dec. 6th. 

' ' Your Excellency thought it might 
be useful to inform me that the Army 
of the lyoire was defeated near Orleans, 
and that the town is reoccupied by 
German troops. 

' ' I have the honor to acknowledge 
the receipt of that communication, 
which I did not think expedient to 
verify through the means which your 
Excellency suggested to me. 

'* Receive, General, the expression 



Iimar of 1870 91 

of the high consideration with which 
I have the honor to be, 

' ' Your very humble and obedient 
servant, 

'' The Governor of Paris, 
*' Gp^ne^rai. Trochu." 

The only means of communication 
between Paris and the outer world 
during this period was by carrier- 
pigeons ; though even this means was 
not to be relied on, as the pigeons 
would not fly after dark, and fre- 
quently they did not complete their 
journey, as they sometimes roosted 
overnight on the way : it was there- 
fore necessar}^ that they should be 
sent out at such an hour that they 
could reach their destination before 
sunset. They were frequently shot 
by sportsmen, their character as car- 
rier-pigeons being unknown, or some- 
times they would stop at a dove-cote, 
and leave their journey incomplete. 
The communications between Paris 
and the outer world were necessarily 



92 ^be 3Franco*(5erman 

irregular. For some such reason, a 
message from Gambetta to the Gov- 
ernor of Paris did not reach the capital 
until six days after date. The mes- 
sage ran as follows : 

"Gambetta to Jui.ks Favrk and 
Trochu. 

" BOURGES, Dec. 14th. 

" During four days I have been 
here, occupied with Bourbaki, reor- 
ganizing the three Corps, the 15th, 
the 1 8th, and the 20th, of the Army 
of the lyoire, severely cut up by the 
forced marches and the heavy rains 
following the evacuation of Orleans. 
This work will take some four or five 
more days to complete. 

' ' The positions occupied by Bour- 
baki cover both Nevers and Bourges. 

' ' The other portions of the Army, 
after the occupation of Orleans, re- 
tired on Beaugency, and Marchenoir : 
positions which it has retained against 
all the efforts of Frederic Charles, 
thanks to the great energy of General 



mat of 1870 93 

Chanzy, whom recent events have 
shown to be a true man of war. 

*'The army, composed of the i6th, 
the 17th, and the 21st Corps, and sup- 
ported by all the forces of the West, 
according to the orders of General 
Trochu, executed an admirable retreat, 
with very heavy losses to the Prus- 
sians. Chanzy stole away by a move- 
ment turning Frederic Charles on the 
left bank of the I^oire at Blois and 
Amboise. Chanzy is in perfect secur- 
ity, ready to take the offensive against 

when his troops are rested, after 

having fought splendidly against su- 
perior numbers, from November 30th 
to December 12th. 

* ' You thus see that the Army of the 
Loire is far from being destroyed 
according to the lies of the Prussians. 
It is separated into two equal forces, 

ready to operate, one on the other 

so as to march on ." 

This message seems to have been 
mutilated on the way, on account of 
the detention of the pigeons, and to 



94 XTbc 3franco*(5erman 

have reached Paris in an incomplete 
form ; and it ends, it will be seen, 
rather abruptly. Two armies were af- 
terwards formed out of the Army of the 
Loire ; they were called respectively 
the First and Second Army of the 
Loire. General Bourbaki was ap- 
pointed commander-in-chief of the 
First, and General Chanzy, com- 
mander-in-chief of the Second of these 
armies. 

On December 6th, the Prussian mon- 
arch issued this congratulatory address 
to his soldiers : 

''Soi.die:rs of thb Confkde^ratk 
Gkrman Armi:es ! 
" We have again arrived at a crisis 
of the war. When I last addressed 
you, the last of the hostile armies 
which at the commencement of the 
campaign confronted us, had, by the 
capitulation of Metz, been destroyed. 
The enemy has since, by extraordin- 
ary exertions, opposed to us newly 
formed troops, and large portions of 



mar of 1870 95 

the inhabitants of France have for- 
saken their peaceful, and by us unhin- 
dered, vocations to take up arms. The 
enemy was frequently superior to us in 
numbers, but you have nevertheless 
again defeated him ; for valor and dis- 
cipline in a righteous cause are worth 
more than numerical preponderance. 
Bvery attempt on the part of the en- 
emy to break through the investment 
lines of Paris have been firmly re- 
pulsed ; often, indeed, with many 
bloody sacrifices, as at Champigny and 
at Le Bourget, but with a heroism 
such as you have everywhere dis- 
played towards him. The armies of 
the enemy, which were advancing 
from every direction to the relief of 
Paris, have all been defeated. Our 
troops, some of whom only a few days 
ago stood before Metz and Strasburg, 
have to-day advanced as far as Orleans 
and Dijon, and, among many smaller 
engagements, two new important bat- 
tles—that of Amiens and the several 
days* fight before Orleans — have been 



96 ^be 3franco*0evman 

added to our former triumphs. Several 
fortresses have been conquered, and 
much war material has been taken. I 
have reason, therefore, for the greatest 
satisfaction, and it is to me a gratifica- 
tion and a duty to express this to you. 
I thank you all, from the general to the 
common soldier. Should the enemy 
persist in a further prosecution of the 
war, I know you will continue to show 
that exertion of all your powers to 
which we owe our great success hith- 
erto, until we wring from him an 
honorable peace, worthy of the great 
sacrifices of blood and life which have 
been offered up. 

'' WlI<I.IAM. 

** Headquarters, Versaii,i,ES, Decem- 
ber 6, 1870." 

The French met with a small suc- 
cess in the capture of Ham, with 200 
prisoners, on December loth, but this 
was more than counterbalanced by the 
victories gained by the German armies 
about the same time. On December 



•QXUac of 1870 97 

8th, the Germans captured Beaugency, 
with I loo prisoners and 6 guns, and 
on the 9th they captured Dieppe. 
Phalsburg surrendered, after a siege 
of several weeks' duration, on Decem- 
ber 1 2th, its garrison of i8oo being 
taken prisoners by the German army. 
This was followed by the capture of 
Montmedy two days after by the Ger- 
mans, with its garrison of 3000. Gen- 
eral Chanzy, the commander-in-chief 
of the Second Army of the lyoire, re- 
tired with his troops to the forest of 
Marchenoir. He was attacked at Ven- 
d6me and Freteval, and he was obliged 
to abandon both places on the i6th. 
On the last day of 1870, the Germans 
bombarded Mezieres, capturing it on 
January 2, 1871, and taking 2000 
prisoners. The Germans finally in- 
vested L,e Mans on January nth, and 
they entered the place the next day. 
This defeat effectually broke up the 
Army of the I^oire. Prince Frederic 
Charles established his headquarters 
there on the 13th. Another French 



gs XLbc 3franco*(3erman 

army, the Army of the North, under 
the command of Faidherbe, was broken 
up by a decisive defeat at St. Quentin. 

We are now approaching the end of 
the war. Some German troops, com- 
manded by Manteuffel, attacked the 
French on January 21st and 23d, and 
were repulsed. The Germans, how- 
ever, captured Dole on the 21st, and 
lyongni on the 24th, of the same 
month. About the same time. Gen- 
eral Trochu resigned his powers as 
commander of the Paris troops in favor 
of General Vinoy (who had accompa- 
nied him in several of his sorties), re- 
taining only his powers as President 
of the Council of Ministers. 

But General Vinoy came into power 
too late to ej0fect any good. The city 
of Paris had been reduced to such a 
state of distress by famine that it could 
hold out no longer ; and on January 
24 th, M. Jules Favre was sent to Ver- 
sailles to communicate with Count Bis- 
marck concerning articles of peace. 



Mac or 1870 99 

The result was that an armistice was 
signed on January 28th, for a period 
of time extending to February 19th 
(subsequently extended to the 24th, 
and then to the 26th of the same 
month), to allow time for the election 
of a National Assembly, charged with 
full powers to make peace. The pre- 
liminary treaty was in the following 
terms : 

"Between Count von Bismarck, 
Chancellor of the Germanic Confedera- 
tion, stipulating in the name of his 
Majesty, the Emperor of Germany, 
King of Prussia, and M. Jules Favre, 
Minister of Foreign Affairs of the 
Government of National Defence, both 
furnished with regular powers, the 
following arrangements have been 
determined : 

"ARTICI.K I 

"A general armistice over all the 
line of military operations in the course 
of being carried on between the German 



loo ^be 3Francos:(3cnnan 

and Frencli armies shall begin on 
this day : and for the Departments 
within the term of three days. The 
duration of the armistice shall be 
twenty-one days, dating from to-day ; 
so that, unless it shall be renewed, the 
armistice will terminate on February 
19th at noon. The belligerent armies 
will preserve their respective positions, 
which shall be separated by a line of 
demarcation. This line will com- 
mence from Pont Bveque on the coast 
of the Department of Calvados, and be 
continued upon I^ignieres, in the north- 
east of the Department of the Mayenne 
(passing between Briouze and From- 
entel). Touching the Department at 
lyignieres, it will follow the limit which 
separates that Department from the 
Department of the Orne, and of the 
Sarthe, to the north of Morannes, and 
will be continued in such a way as to 
leave in German occupation the De- 
partment of the Sarthe, Indre-et-lyoire, 
I^oire-et-Cher, and Yonne, as far as a 
point at which to the coast of Quarre- 



■Mar of 1870 loi 

les-Tombes, the Departments of the 
C6te d' Or, the Nievre, and the Yonne, 
touch each other. Setting out from 
this point, the tracing of the line will 
be reserved for an understanding which 
shall take place as soon as the con- 
tracting parties shall be informed as to 
the actual state of the military opera- 
tions which are being executed in the 
Department of the C6te d' Or, of the 
Doubs, and of the Jura. In any case, 
the line shall pass through the terri- 
tory composed of these three Depart- 
ments, leaving to German occupation 
the Departments situated to the north, 
and to the French army those situated 
to the south of this territory. The 
Departments of the North and of the 
Pas de Calais, the fortresses of Givet 
and Langres, with the territory which 
surrounds them to the distance of lo 
kilometres, and the peninsula of Havre, 
as far as a line drawn from Ktretat, in 
the direction of Romain, will remain 
outside the limits of German occupa- 
tion. The two belligerent armies, and 



102 Xlbc 3Franco»(3erman 

their advanced posts on either side, 
will remain at a distance of lo kilome- 
tres from the lines drawn to separate 
their positions. Kach of the two 
armies reserves for itself the right of 
maintaining its authority in the ter- 
ritory that it occupies, and of employ- 
ing the means which its commander 
may judge necessary to attain that end. 
The armistice applies equally to the 
naval forces of the two countries, 
adopting the meridian of Dunkerque as 
the line of demarcation, to the west of 
which the French fleet will remain, and 
to the east of which, as soon as they 
can be warned, will withdraw those 
German ships of war which are west- 
ward of that line . The captures which 
are made after the conclusion, and 
before the notification, of the armistice, 
will be restored, as well as the prison- 
ers who may be taken in the period 
indicated. The military operations in 
the territory of the Departments of 
Doubs, Jura, and C6te d' Or, as well as 
the siege of Belfort shall continue 



War of 1870 103 

independently of the armistice, until 
an agreement shall be arrived at re- 
garding the line of demarcation, the 
tracing of which through the three 
Departments mentioned has been re- 
served for an ulterior understanding. 

"ARTICI.K II. 

"The armistice thus agreed upon 
has been made so as to permit the 
Government of National Defence to 
convoke an Assembly, freely elected, 
which will pronounce upon the ques- 
tion whether the war shall be con- 
tinued, or on what conditions peace 
shall be made. The Assembly will 
meet in the city of Bordeaux. Every 
facility will be given by the comman- 
ders of the German armies for the 
elections and the meeting of the Dep- 
uties who compose that Assembly. 

" ARTICI.K III. 

"There shall be immediately sur- 
rendered to the German army by the 
French military authorities all the 



104 XLbc 3franco*(3ei-man 

forts forming the perimeters of the 
exterior defence of Paris, as well as 
their material of war. The communes 
and the houses situated outside that 
perimeter, or between the forts, may- 
be occupied by the German troops as 
far as a line to be drawn by military- 
commissioners. The ground between 
this line and the fortified enceinte of 
the city of Paris will be interdicted to 
the armed forces of the two sides. The 
manner of surrendering the forts, and 
the drawing of the line already men- 
tioned, will form the object of a proto- 
col to be annexed to the present 
convention. 

*' ARTICI.B IV. 

"During the armistice the German 
army will not enter the city of Paris. 

"ARTICI.K V. 

' ' The enceiyite shall be disarmed of 
its guns, the carriages of which will be 
transported into the forts designated 



*Mar of 1870 105 

for that purpose by a commission of 
the German army. 

"ArticIvB VI. 

" The garrisons (Army of the Line, 
Mobile Guard, and Marine), of the forts 
of Paris shall be prisoners of war, ex- 
cepting a division of 12,000 men, which 
the military authorities will preserve 
for service inside the city. The troops 
who are prisoners of war shall lay 
down their arms, which will be col- 
lected in the places designated, and 
given up, according to arrangements 
made by a commissioner, in the usual 
manner. These troops shall remain 
in the interior of the city, where they 
will not be allowed to pass the enceinte 
during the armistice. The French au- 
thorities bind themselves to take care 
that every individual belonging to the 
army and to the Mobile Guard shall 
remain in the interior of the town. 
The officers of the captured troops shall 
be designated in a list to be delivered 
to the German authorities. At the 



io6 tTbe 3fraiico*(5erman 

expiration of the armistice, all the 
combatants of the army confined in 
Paris will have leave to constitute 
themselves prisoners of war to the 
German army, if before that time peace 
is not concluded. The officers made 
prisoners will retain their arms. 

*' ArticIvK VII. 

'' The National Guard will retain its 
arms. It will be charged with the 
protection of Paris and maintenance 
of order. The same will be the case 
with the gendarmerie, and the as- 
similated troops employed in the mu- 
nicipal service, such as the Republican 
Guard, the Douaniers, and the Pom- 
piers. The whole of this category 
shall not exceed 3500. All the Corps 
of Franc-Tireurs shall be dissolved by 
ordinance of the French Government. 

"ARTIC1.K VIII. 

** Immediately after the signatures 
of these presents, and before the taking 
possession of the forts, the commander-^ 



Wint of 1870 107 

in-cliief of the German armies will give 
every facility to the commissioners 
whom the French Government will 
send, whether into the Departments or 
abroad, to take steps for the revictual- 
ling of, and the bringing to, the city 
the commodities which are destined 
for it. 

"ARTICI.K IX. 

''After the surrender of the forts, 
and after the disarmament of the en- 
ceinte and of the garrison, stipulated in 
Articles V. and VI. , there victualling of 
Paris will be effected freely by transit 
upon the railroads and the rivers. Pro- 
visions intended for this revictualling 
shall not be drawn from the districts 
occupied by the German troops : and 
the French Government engages itself 
to obtain provisions outside of the line 
of demarcation which surrounds the 
positions of the German armies, ex- 
cept in the case of an authorization to 
the contrary effect given by the com- 
mander of the latter. 



io8 ^be 3franco*(5erman 

*' ARTICI.E X. 

" Every person wishing to quit the 
city of Paris must be furnished with 
regular permits, delivered by the 
French military authority and submit- 
ted to the visi of the German authori- 
ties. Permits, or visis^ will be granted, 
in right of their position, to candidates, 
to the provincial deputations, and to 
the deputies of the Assembly. The 
free movements of the persons who 
have received the authorization indi- 
cated will be permitted only between 
six in the morning and six in the 
evening. 

''Artici^K XI. 

" The city of Paris shall pay a mu- 
nicipal contribution of war amount- 
ing to 200,000,000 francs [$40,000,000 
United States currency]. The pay- 
ment must be effected before the fif- 
teenth day of the armistice : the mode 
of payment to be determined by a mixed 
German and French commission. 



•QWar ot 1870 109 

"ARTIC1.E XII. 

* ' During the armistice nothing shall 
be taken away from the public objects 
of value which may serve as pledges 
for the recovery of war contributions. 

*'Artici.k XIII. 

" The transport into Paris of arms, 
of munitions of war, or of articles en- 
tering into their manufacture, is forbid- 
den during the terms of the armistice. 

*' ARTICI.K XIV. 

*' Immediate steps shall be taken for 
the exchange of all prisoners of war 
made by the French army since the 
commencement of the war. For this 
end the French authorities will hand, 
as promptly as possible, nominal lists 
of the German prisoners of war to the 
German authorities at Amiens, at I^e 
Mans, at Orleans, and at Vesoul. 
The liberation of the German prisoners 
of war will be effected at the points 
nearest to the frontier. The German 



no XLbe 3Pranco*(5crman 

authorities will deliver in exchange, 
at the same points, and in the briefest 
possible time, to the French military- 
authorities, a like number of French 
prisoners of war, of corresponding 
grades. The exchange will extend to 
civil prisoners, such as captains of 
ships of the German merchant navy, 
and the civilian French prisoners who 
have been kept in Germany. 

''ArTici.1) XV. 



<c 



A postal service for letters not 
sealed will be organized between Paris 
and the Departments through the 
medium of the headquarters at Ver- 
sailles. In faith of which the under- 
signed have appended to the present 
Convention their signatures and their 
seals. 

" Done at Versailles, the 28th of January, 
1871. 
" [i,.S.] Bismarck. [i,.s.] Favre)." 

This convention was signed with- 
out consultation with Gambetta and 



mat of 1870 III 

i:he delegates of the Government, who 
were now sitting in Bordeaux, instead 
of in Tours. M. Gambetta at first 
deemed it incredible that the delegates 
of the Government in Paris should 
have surrendered the city without con- 
sultation with those in Bordeaux ; 
but, when the oflScial despatches by- 
Jules Favre were received, Gambetta 
issued a proclamation to this effect : 

' ' Paris the impregnable, forced and 
vanquished by famine, has succumbed, 
iDut the city remains intact, as a last 
homage wrested by the power of 
moral grandeur from the barbarians : 
but, as if our ill-fortune had resolved 
to crush us, something more sinister 
and painful than the fall of Paris has 
come upon us. Unknown to us, with- 
out informing us, and without con- 
sulting us, an armistice has been 
signed of which we have too late 
learned the guilty thoughtlessness, 
which surrenders to the Prussian troops 
Departments occupied by our soldiers, 



112 XLbc 3franco*0erman 

and imposes upon us the obligation to 
remain inactive three weeks, in order 
to convoke a National Assembly, in 
the sad circumstances in which our 
country is placed. ' * 

Gambetta, however, ratified the 
armistice convention : but he at- 
tempted to insure the election of 
Republicans to the Assembly, by a 
decree in which he declared ineligible 
all persons who had filled the posts of 
Minister, Senator, Councillor of State, 
or Prefect under the late Empire, or 
who had accepted official candida- 
tures. He also declared ineligible all 
members of the different dynasties 
who had reigned over France. His 
colleagues, however, revoked the 
decree, and restored freedom of elec- 
tion ; whereupon Gambetta resigned 
his functions, declaring that he and 
his colleagues had no hopes in com- 
mon. The members of the Govern- 
ment replied to Gambetta' s reproaches 
by the following decree : 



mac or 1870 113 

**We do not admit that arbitrary 
restrictions can be imposed upon the 
ballot. We have fought against the 
Empire and its practices, and we do 
not intend to revive them by institut- 
ing a system of oJB&cial candidatures 
by means of elimination. Great mis- 
takes may have been committed, and 
heavy responsibilities may flow there- 
from : nothing can be more true than 
that the misfortunes of the country 
efface everything but its extreme need; 
and, moreover, by lowering ourselves 
to the condition of mere party actors, 
to proscribe our former antagonists, 
we should have the shame and sorrow 
of wounding those who have fought 
and bled by our sides. To recall the 
memory of past dissensions at a time 
when the enemy treads our blood- 
stained soil, is to retard by our ran- 
cors the great task of the deliverance 
of our country. We regard principles 
as superior to expedients. We do not 
wish that the first decree of the Re- 
publican Assembly in 1871 should be 



114 XLbc 3francos=(5erman 

an act of mistrust directed against the 
electors. To them belongs the sover- 
eignty : let them exercise it without 
weakness, and the country will be 
saved." 

The elections took place on Febru- 
ary 8th. Owing to the short time 
allowed, which scarcely permitted de- 
liberation, or communication between 
the different parts of France, it was 
found when the Assembly met, that 
the same member was often elected by 
two or more constituencies, which 
rendered supplementary elections after- 
wards necessary. M. Gambetta was 
chosen by several constituencies. M. 
Thiers was evidently the most popular 
of the members, being chosen by about 
twenty-five different constituencies. 
Alsace and I^orraine sent members, 
who withdrew after the ratification 
of peace. 

The National Assembly met in the 
theatre at Bordeaux on February 12th. 
The desire for peace being uppermost 



Wiav of 1870 115 

among the people at this moment, 
members of various political hues 
were elected, and the Assembly was 
composed of moderate men. The 
day after the Assembly met Jules 
Favre, in the name of his colleagues 
and himself, resigned the powers of 
the Government of National Defence 
into the hands of that body ; he 
announced, however, that they would 
remain at their posts until their suc- 
cessors were appointed. He spoke as 
follows : 

' ' We have borne the burden of 
government ; but we have no other de- 
sire, under existing circumstances, 
than to be able to place our temporary 
plans in the hands of the National 
Assembly. Thanks to your patriotism 
and reunion, we hope that the coun- 
try, having been taught by misfortune, 
will know how to heal her wounds, 
and to reconstitute the national exis- 
tence. We no longer have any power. 
We depend entirely upon your decision. 



ii6 XLbc 3franco*(5erman 

We confidently expect the constitution 
of new and legitimate powers." 

Garibaldi, on the same day, resigned 
his seat in the Assembly, and he 
shortly afterwards left for his home in 
the island of Caprera. On the i6th, 
the Assembly organized by electing M. 
Grevy, a moderate Republican, as its 
President. M. Thiers was the next 
day elected Chief of the Executive 
Power. He assumed at once the func- 
tions of his ofiice, and proceeded to 
appoint a Cabinet. A protest against 
the proposed annexation of Alsace and 
lyorraine to Germany was laid by the 
deputies of those provinces before the 
House ; it ran as follows : 

''The National Assembly, France 
and Europe, which are witnesses to 
the exactions of Prussia, cannot per- 
mit the completion of an act which 
would rend Alsace and Lorraine from 
France. We are, and will forever 
remain, French, in good as well as in 



Mar ot IS70 "7 

evil fortune. We have sealed with 
our own blood the indissoluble pact 
which unites us to France ; and we 
aJErm once more, in the depths of all 
our trials, our immovable loyalty to the 
Fatherland. France cannot abandon 
those who will not be separated from 
her. The National Assembly, sprung 
from universal suffrage, could not 
concede demands tending to destroy 
the nationality of a whole population. 
Neither can the people, in its electoral 
colleges, allow it. As little can Kurope 
confirm these criminal attempts, and 
let a whole people be treated like a 
herd of tame beasts. Peace, in con- 
sideration of the cession of territory, 
can never be a durable peace, but 
merely a momentary truce, soon to be 
followed by another war. As to our- 
selves, inhabitants of Alsace and I^or- 
raine, we are ready to resume fighting, 
and therefore we shall hold as null and 
void any offer, treaty, vote, and plebi- 
scite which would have for its object 
the separation of Alsace and lyorraine 



ii8 ^be 3Prancos(5erman 

from France. We proclaim our right 
to remain united to French soil, and 
we formally engage ourselves to defend 
our honor." 

After some discussion, the Assembly- 
decided that M. Thiers should be left 
free to sign such terms of peace as the 
Germans would agree to. It was a 
task of some difficulty, as Bismarck 
was stringent, and would not yield 
one iota of the German claims. Never- 
theless, on February 26th, the treaty 
was signed at Versailles, and was 
finally ratified by the Assembly. On 
February 28th, M. Thiers arrived at 
Bordeaux from Versailles, and at once 
submitted the following bill for the 
approval of the Assembly. 

' ' The National Assembly, forced by 
necessity, and therefore not being 
responsible, adopts the Preliminaries 
of Peace signed at Versailles on Feb- 
ruary 26th. 

" Art. I. France renounces in 



Mar of 1870 119 

favor of the German Empire the follow- 
ing rights : The whole of Lorraine, 
including Metz and Thionville, and 
Alsace, but without Belfort. 

"Art. II. France will pay the sum 
of five milliards of francs, of which one 
milliard is to be paid in 1871, and the 
remaining four milliards by instalments 
extending over three years. 

"Art. III. The German troops will 
begin to evacuate the French territory 
as soon as the treaty is ratified. They 
will first evacuate the interior of Paris, 
and some Departments lying in the 
western region. The evacuations of 
the other Departments will take place 
gradually after payment of the first 
milliard, and proportionally to the 
payment of the other milliards. In- 
terest of five per cent, will be paid 
on the amount remaining due from 
the date of the ratification of the 
treaty. 

"Art. IV. The German troops will 
not levy any requisitions in the De- 
partments occupied by them : but, on 



I20 XLbc 3francos(5erman 

the other hand, they will be maintained 
at the cost of France. 

*'Art. V. A delay will be granted 
to the inhabitants of the territories an- 
nexed to decide for themselves sever- 
ally to which of the two nationalities 
they will adhere. 

' 'Art. VI. Prisoners of war will be 
immediately set at liberty. 

''Art. VII. Negotiations for a 
definite treaty of peace will be opened 
at Brussels after the ratification of 
the treaty. 

"Art. VIII. The administration 
of the Departments occupied by the 
German troops will be entrusted to 
French officials, but under the control 
of the chiefs of the German corps of 
occupation. 

' 'Art. IX. The present treaty con- 
fers on the Germans no rights whatever 
in the portion of territory not occupied. 

" Art. X. The treaty will have to 
be ratified by the National Assembly 
of France." 

The time of paying the five milliards 



mac of 1870 121 

was afterwards lengthened a year, un- 
til March, 1875. 

Intense excitement was caused in 
Paris by the report that the Germans 
intended to enter the city. In order 
to allay this excitement, M. Thiers 
issued the following proclamation : 

''Inhabitants of Paris ! 

'' The Government appeals to your 
patriotism and wisdom. You have in 
your hands the fate of Paris. Upon 
you it depends to save or destroy 
France herself. After a heroic resist- 
ance, famine compelled us to give up 
the forts to the victorious enemy. The 
army which we had hoped would be 
able to help us was driven back be- 
yond the lyoire, and incontestable 
facts obliged the Government and the 
National Assembly to open negotia- 
tions. During six days the negotia- 
tors fought foot by foot, and did what 
was humanly possible to obtain the 
most favorable conditions, and have 
signed the preliminaries, which will be 



124 Zbc S'rancosGerman 

ceded to Germany. Five milliards are 
to be paid, and portions of France are 
to remain occupied until the amount 
is paid. Paris will be partially occu- 
pied if the ratification at Bordeaux fol- 
lows. We are now at the end of a 
glorious but bloody war, which was 
forced upon us with frivolity without 
parallel, and in which your troops 
have taken so honorable a part. May 
the greatness of Germany be consoli- 
dated in peace. ' ' 

On March ist, some 30,000 Prussian 
and Bavarian troops, with some of the 
German princes at their head, entered 
Paris ; but the treaty being ratified 
that day, they evacuated it on the 2d. 
Neither the Emperor nor the Crown 
Prince were among them. The Ger- 
man army immediately began to evac- 
uate the French territory, leaving only 
such troops as were necessary for the 
occupation of several of the French De- 
partments, until the payment of the 
war indemnity. 



•(tmar of 1870 125 

The ex-Kmperor Napoleon left his 
confinement at Wilhelmshoehe about 
the middle of March, and joined his 
wife and son at Chiselhurst, in the 
south of England, where they have 
since resided in strict privacy. 

The French Assembly shortly after- 
wards transferred its sittings to Ver- 
sailles, which has since been the 
political capital of France. About the 
same time M. Thiers was elected Pres- 
ident of the Republic for a period of 
three years. 

Here I must close my history. The 
war led to changes more important 
than at first foreseen ; and whether 
these changes will be lasting and bene- 
ficial, time alone can show. Mean- 
while, I lay down my pen. 



^INIS. 



OCT S4 *B9B 



